New Delhi: Three men, including a Delhi University graduate, have been arrested by West Delhi Police for running over 20 websites related to fake educational boards and selling forged mark sheets, cops said on Monday.
Police said the accused were identified as Pankaj Arora (35), who claimed to be a DU graduate, Pawiter Singh (40), a native of Punjab, and Gopal Krishan (40), who printed and delivered fake mark-sheets to the gang.
DCP (West) Vijay Kumar said on Monday that a complainant from Rajasthan had filed a complaint with them, regarding an advertisement in a Rajasthan-based newspaper about a "SRKM Education and Welfare Society," situated in Delhi's Hari Nagar. Kumar had contacted them to get admission and certificates for Class X.
Arora, the owner of the institute, reportedly convinced the man to pay Rs 1,31,000, after which he received a Class X mark-sheet, passing, migration and transfer certificates of Board of Secondary Education, Andhra Pradesh through post.
On receiving the certificates, the complainant was shocked as he had neither appeared in the examination nor gone to Andhra Pradesh.
Immediately, he contacted Arora, who replied that everything had been arranged and not to worry.
"The logo of Board of Secondary Education, Andhra Pradesh, printed on the mark-sheet seemed genuine. But when the complainant applied for passport in Sikar, Rajasthan, he was told that the Class X passing certificate was fake," said the DCP.
When police came to know about the incident, a team was formed, which was led by Inspector Vijender Singh (SHO, Hari Nagar), Sub-Inspector Vikas, SI Sudhir, and monitored by KSN Subudhi (ACP, Rajouri Garden).
The team soon apprehended Arora from Delhi, and based on his inputs, mounted surveillance on Pawiter Singh, who was later nabbed from Karkari Road near Karkardooma Court. Later, Gopal Krishan was held in Ludhiana.
Cyber security expert Kislay Chaudhary told Millennium Post that it takes a few thousand rupees to make a website and start search engine optimisation. "One has work for 40 to 45 days, at most, and put search keywords on the internet. Then, they can easily make their website to come first when people search the keyword," said Chaudhary.