How do you make a mockery of the mighty machinery run by the world’s most pampered self-styled chowkidar?

You introduce yourself as Dr Kiran J. Patel from Gujarat, additional director (strategy and campaigns) in the Prime Minister’s Office, with a verified Twitter account whose followers include one Pradipsinh Vaghela, a purported BJP Gujarat general secretary.

At least, such particulars were all Kiran Bhai Patel needed to boast to be hosted in five-star hotels in Kashmir, treated to the best of hospitality at its tourist spots, granted access to high-security zones, including an area out of bounds for civilians, and provided with Z-plus security.

Over five months, he visited Kashmir four times.

A fortnight ago, Kiran Bhai was arrested on the charge of being a conman. The arrest was made public on Friday.

If the charges against Kiran Bhai are true, it will mean that Kiran Bhai made fools out of those running one of the world’s most militarised zones that is being projected of late as a shining trophy in the Narendra Modi government’s security showcase.

The case raises several important questions, not the least among them: Even if Kiran Bhai were a bona fide PMO official, did that entitle him to the pleasure trip he enjoyed at the expense of the State? Worse, is this how officials from the PMO have been treated all this while in Kashmir?

By the time Kiran Bhai was arrested on March 3, he had posed as a PMO official to visit the Line of Control, the snow-packed Gulmarg meadows and the Dal Lake. He had been put up in five-star hotels, was surrounded by security personnel and moved around in a bulletproof Mahindra Scorpio SUV, much of it paid for by the government. He also allegedly held several meetings with officials in Kashmir.

An element of incredulity has also crept in. Even a cursory search on the PMO website would have shown that no such post as “director (strategy and campaigns)” is mentioned, which should have set the alarm bells ringing and necessitated a more thorough verification.

Besides, PMO officials do not land up in hotspots unannounced. Official communication from Delhi would have been initiated before such a visit took place.

Yashovardhan Jha Azad, retired IPS officer and security affairs veteran, tweeted: “Something’s wrong because merely being PMO official does not entitle you to even security, let alone Z plus. Security is on threat perception alone so someone should answer. Besides a message goes from protected persons’ base to the state visited for providing security.”

An embarrassed Jammu and Kashmir police kept Kiran Bhai’s arrest under wraps for a fortnight. The disclosure became inevitable as his police remand ended on Friday and he was sent to judicial custody.

Kiran Bhai runs a verified Twitter account under the name of Dr Kiran J. Patel and has a few thousand followers. His Twitter bio claims he has a PhD from Commonwealth University, Virginia, an MBA from IIM Trichy, an MTech in computer science and a BE in computer engineering. Kiran Bhai further describes himself as a “thinker, strategist, analyst and campaign manager”.

A police spokesperson said its CID wing “gave information” to it “about the arrival of an impersonator in Kashmir” on March 2. He said the Srinagar police chief immediately sent a team led by the Srinagar East SP to the five-star hotel on the Dal Lake’s banks where Patel was staying to question him.

“As his replies were found suspicious, he was taken to Nishat police station where he admitted his crime. Ten fake visiting cards and two mobiles were seized from him,” the spokesman said.

The police said they had booked Kiran Bhai under various sections, including IPC 420 (cheating).

“The accused Kiran Bhai Patel was arrested on 03-03-2023 and was in police remand up to 17-03-2023. Many relevant persons have been examined in this case. The case is at the initial stage of investigation. Further details will be shared later on,” the spokesperson said.

The police said three cases had earlier been registered against the “fraudster” --- at Raopura police station, Baroda city, in 2019; at Naroda police station, Ahmedabad, in 2017; and at Bayad police station, Aravalli.

For weeks before his arrest, Kiran Bhai had literally mocked the establishment by detailing his visits to different places in Kashmir, moving in a security cavalcade in the company of lots of soldiers.

A picture clicked on February 14 and uploaded on Twitter shows him standing in front of the Kaman post in Uri, where a bridge connects the Valley with PoK. Civilians are not allowed to get close to the bridge without permission from top quarters.

Kiran Bhai’s lawyer in Srinagar, Rehan Gowhar, said in Srinagar that the allegations against his client were baseless. He quoted Kiran Bhai’s family as saying that his arrest was the result of political rivalry in Gujarat.

“My client told me that he had been accompanied by two more people from Gujarat. They have been set free by the police. The police have also recorded his statement before the magistrate under Section 164,” he said.

Sources said action had been initiated against two police officers. “An IAS officer introduced him as a PMO official and the issue is also part of the investigation,” the source said.

RJD leader and Bihar deputy chief minister Tejashwi Prasad Yadav claimed that Kiran Bhai was a BJP member. He displayed what he claimed was a printout of Patel’s BJP membership card and a photograph of Patel in the company of Union home minister Amit Shah.

“The Centre has unleashed all central agencies on the Opposition instead of conmen like these. Had the person been a terrorist, imagine the kind of information he may have got,” Tejashwi said.

Kapil, who is part of the AAP’s social media team, wrote on Twitter: “Pay your taxes on time so that they can be used to provide security to a Conman from Gujarat!”