New Delhi: In a major security operation ahead of the Republic Day celebrations, the Delhi Police Crime Branch has arrested a woman for allegedly moving around the capital in an Innova car fitted with forged number plates of a foreign embassy, an act officials say posed a serious national security risk.
The accused has been identified as Aashma Begum (45), a resident of Guwahati, Assam. She was apprehended on January 15, 2026, in the Vasant Vihar area of South Delhi, while driving a vehicle bearing a fake diplomatic registration number 144 CD 54, police said.
According to the Crime Branch, intelligence inputs indicated that the woman was frequently visiting various foreign embassies and high-security diplomatic zones in New Delhi using forged embassy-style number plates to avoid routine police checks. During the search of her vehicle, police recovered two additional forged embassy number plates, including one bearing number 75 CD 154.
During interrogation, Aashma Begum initially claimed to be a representative of a foreign embassy but failed to produce any official documents. Subsequent questioning revealed that she had purchased the Innova car from a foreign embassy in November 2024, with the original registration number 75 CD 253. After a complaint was filed against her at Chanakyapuri Police Station for not transferring the vehicle registration, she allegedly removed the original plates and prepared forged diplomatic plates to continue unrestricted movement in diplomatic areas.
Police said the accused impersonated an embassy representative and used forged number plates to cheat government agencies and for suspected ulterior motives, warranting a deeper probe from a national security perspective. A case has been registered under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, and further investigation is underway.
Aashma Begum has been remanded to six days of police custody. Her mobile phone has been seized and is being analysed. Officials stated that her arrest is crucial in view of national security concerns ahead of the Republic Day celebrations, and her activities and links are currently under verification.
