Bareilly, Feb 16 (IANS): The Uttar Pradesh's Bareilly police have arrested a man for allegedly impersonating Union Home Minister Amit Shah and making several calls to an ex-MLA, promising him an election ticket if he pays him money.

The arrested man has been identified as Ravindra Maurya while the police are looking for his accomplice Shahid.

Superintendent of Police (Rural area) Mukesh Mishra said that Shahid and Maurya have been booked under charges of robbery, cheating, and impersonation, as well as under sections of the IT Act.

The case was filed on the complaint of Inspector Vinod Kumar of Nawabganj Police Station.

"In Truecaller, it was written in Devnagari 'Grah Mantralaya Delhi, Kendra Sarkaar' (Ankit). This was done by Shahid and Ravindra Maurya. Shahid is absconding, while Ravindra Maurya has been arrested. During the investigation, it came to light that Shahid indulged in similar acts of deceit earlier as well," Mishra said.

The official said that the gang would call its targets, mostly political leaders and party workers, impersonating the Union Home Minister and would try to elicit money from them with fake promises of getting them election tickets.

Maurya had called and spoken to former BJP MLA Kishanlal Rajput (from Barkhera assembly constituency in Pilibhit district) on phone from January 4 to January 20 nine times.

During their investigation, police zeroed in on Ravindra Maurya, and called him to the police station, Mishra said.

When he came to know that he was under police scanner, Maurya broke the SIM, which was later found to have been registered under a man named Harish from his village, the official said.

When he was questioned by police, Harish told them that he had purchased the SIM on December 29, 2023. After some time, Ravindra Maurya and Shahid of the village threatened him and snatched the SIM from him.