Authorities in a rural district in northwestern Bangladesh said on Friday that they had launched an investigation following the discovery of a fake birth certificate issued from a local government office bearing the name of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

The fake birth certificate, issued in 2007, mentioned the prime minister’s actual date of birth (Dec. 25, 1971) and the names of his parents – Pierre Trudeau and Margaret Trudeau.

Moreover, it mentioned the Trudeaus as citizens of Bangladesh, with his place of birth in Pabna district.

“It is really embarrassing for our country. We have launched an investigation against it to find who is responsible for this,” local administration chief Sukhmoy Sarkar told EFE.

“We have also informed the police about it. Appropriate action will be taken against the responsible person,” he said.

Local media reported that the certificate was available on the official server until Thursday before it was removed.

Bangladesh passed a law in 2004 requiring citizens to register the birth and death of their family members.

But the job is usually handled by low-level government officials or public representatives, especially in rural Bangladesh, leaving it vulnerable to forgery and bribery.

The authorities tightened their monitoring of birth registrations after it was alleged that many Rohingyas from Myanmar were registered as Bangladeshis by local government officials in exchange for money.

In February, the detective branch of police in Dhaka arrested five people for providing Rohingyas with fake birth registration certificates.

Registration of birth is mandatory for obtaining several services, such as a passport, a driving license, a national identity card, marriage and land registrations, and a life insurance policy.

Source: Agencia EFE

BDST: 1457 HRS, MAR 24, 2024
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