Bengaluru: The high court has likened an alleged Rs 5.3-crore fake government job scam to the plot of a “classic potboiler”, refusing to quash criminal proceedings against a Bengaluru woman and her father accused of orchestrating an elaborate employment racket.Dismissing the petition filed by Shamshad Begum and her father Mansoor Ahmed, Justice M Nagaprasanna remarked that the case “reads less like an ordinary criminal complaint and more like the script of a classic potboiler, where every succeeding act unveils a deeper layer of calculated deception.”According to the court, the allegations, if ultimately proved, reveal “not an isolated act of cheating but a carefully engineered scheme” that preyed on the aspirations of unemployed youth by promising them govt jobs in exchange for money.The petitioners, who allegedly posed as Congress leaders, are accused of cheating job seekers of nearly Rs 5.3 crore in 2023 by assuring them of appointments in various govt depts. The case was registered by the CCB police on a complaint filed by Sangamesh Rachaiah Vastrada, a relative of one of the alleged victims.Rejecting the plea to quash the FIR, the court noted that the complaint was far from being a vague set of allegations. Instead, it laid out in considerable detail the alleged modus operandi. The narrative begins with the collection of Rs 25 lakh from seven aspirants before expanding to more victims, with investigators claiming that online transfers from multiple job seekers eventually totalled an astounding Rs 5.3 crore.Justice Nagaprasanna observed that the case would have been different had it involved nothing more than an unfulfilled promise of employment. Instead, the allegations depict what the court described as a meticulously choreographed fraud designed to appear genuine.According to the state public prosecutor BN Jagadeesha, the accused allegedly created fake email IDs, fabricated appointment orders, invented non-existent govt establishments and even set up sham training centres to convince victims that the recruitment process was authentic.To sustain the illusion, aspiring candidates were allegedly sent to places in Kolkata and Maharashtra for what they believed were official training programmes. The deception unravelled only later, when it emerged that the appointment letters, departments, email communications and training exercises were entirely fictitious.The petitioners argued that the criminal case was a retaliatory move after they initiated cheque bounce proceedings against the complainant. They also contended that none of the alleged victims had personally approached police.The state, however, maintained that the accused were running an organised racket involving forged appointment orders, fake digital communications and bogus recruitment infrastructure.Addressing the petitioners’ argument, the high court held that the absence of complaints directly from the victims did not diminish the seriousness of the allegations. The prosecution, the court said, rests not merely on who filed the complaint but on the detailed account of an alleged fraudulent enterprise that systematically lured and deceived innocent job aspirants.BOXFraudsters pose as pvt company recruiters, dupe job seekersBengaluru: Fraudsters allegedly duped job seekers by posing as KreditBee recruiters and issuing fake offer letters using the company’s identity. KreditBee has sought action against the accused.The complaint names Pankaj Kumar posing as hiring manager, Pintu Kumar and Sameer Ansari as HR team as accused. According to the complaint filed by a staff member of Finnovation Tech Solutions Private Limited, which owns KreditBee, the trio, along with others, posed as hiring officials, impersonated KreditBee employees, and circulated fake job offers using the company’s name, logo, and other official details without authorization.The forged offer letters were sent to prospective candidates through the email IDs notifications@zohoforms.in and talent@careers-kreditbee.in, along with multiple mobile numbers allegedly used by the accused.East Cyber Crime police have registered a case. According to police, the complainant has provided the mobile numbers from which the accused allegedly contacted the aspirants.
