India, May 29 -- The Mumbai unit of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) arrested a passport assistant and a private agent after it found that the duo was allegedly involved in the issuance of seven passports to unknown applicants based on forged documents. Five of them went abroad using the travel documents, raising grave security concerns. All seven are currently absconding, according to CBI sources.

Passport assistant Akshay Meena and agent Bhavesh Shah were arrested on Tuesday evening and produced in a special court in Mumbai on Wednesday. The court remanded them to CBI custody till June 2, saying it was "a matter of serious concern" that five of the applicants had travelled abroad.

On June 26-27 last year, the CBI had conducte...