A man, posing as an IAS officer, was arrested for allegedly duping several vendors of more than `2 crore across the country under the guise of the Centre's Rashtriya Gramin Saksharta Mission (RGSM) scheme by luring them with fake tenders for supplying school uniforms to underprivileged children.
The accused, identified as Saurabh Singh, an office bearer of the fake trust, was arrested from Lucknow on September 15 following sustained surveillance and raids in Delhi and Uttar Pradesh. His associates — Ratnakar alias Karunakar Upadhyay and Anita Upadhyay — were arrested in July.
“According to investigators, the accused created a trust and a website resembling a government scheme, published fake tenders and even used forged letterheads claiming RGSM to be ‘a Government of India undertaking',” Additional Commissioner of Police (Economic Offences Wing) Amrutha Guguloth said in an official statement.
They posed as IAS officers to win the confidence of vendors and executed agreements for the supply of uniforms meant for underprivileged schoolchildren, the officer added.
Ratnakar Upadhyay, a serial offender with a history of 12 criminal cases, including a rape case in UP, was arrested on July 16 along with his accomplice, Anita Upadhyay.
She served as the head of the bogus trust. After the arrest of these two, police started the search for another co-conspirator, Saurabh Singh, who works as an office bearer of RGSM. Raids were conducted at Dwarka, where the accused used to reside.
Thereafter, raids were conducted at Lucknow, Jaunpur and Ghonda. Several CDRs were analysed, and information was also gathered from utility apps. Finally, Saurabh was also apprehended on September 15 from Lucknow.
The EOW has so far registered six cases related to this scam, with multiple similar complaints pouring in from across the country.
According to police, the accused created a trust and a fake website closely resembling a genuine government scheme, the ‘Rashtriya Gramin Swasthya Mission’. They used fake letterheads, posed as IAS officers and published tender advertisements in newspapers to lure prospective vendors. The vendors were made to believe they would be supplying school uniforms for a government programme. The modus operandi involved executing agreements with vendors for large supply orders.
After taking delivery of goods, the accused would not make payments. Instead, they would demand huge sums of money disguised as different official charges like “processing fee”, “commission”, and “stamp paper charges”. In one case, a complainant was duped of approximately `2 crore.
Investigation revealed that the accused had opened a bank account in the name of RGSM. A huge amount of money was withdrawn and used for personal gain. The EOW has so far recovered 45,000 uniforms worth `1.5 crore, along with `2.79 lakh in cash and some gold ornaments.
The police have also identified two flats and a car worth crores, purchased with the proceeds of the crime. Proceedings have been initiated to attach these properties.
The police advised against making upfront payments like “earnest money” or “processing fees” unless verified through legitimate channels. The investigation is ongoing, and more arrests are expected.
