Job Con leaves 400 stranded in city

Promised posts in forest depts of 5 states by two men in Patna, job-seekers from various parts of country reach city to find address in offer letter fake

Job Con leaves 400 stranded in city

Promised posts in forest depts of 5 states by two men in Patna, job-seekers from various parts of country reach city to find address in offer letter fake

Over 400 job-seekers were duped by two men from Patna, who promised them jobs in various capacities at the Forest Department in the city. The candidates realised they had been gypped only after they reached the city in search of the concocted address mentioned on the offer letters.

Job fraud: The candidates were given bogus offer letters and asked to
report at an address in the city. pics/jignesh mistry

The place mentioned on the their offer letters, namely Suman Tower, Plot No-18, Nargis Dutt Road, near Petrol Pump, Shivajinagar Sector No II, did not exist. Two persons identified as Suraj Singh and Kanesh Lohariya allegedly conceived the fraud. They had placed an advertisement in newspapers claiming openings in the forest department of five states.

Narendra Dwivedi, one of the victims of the fraud, said he had given up his job as a flight controller at the Delhi Airport for the 'lucrative' post offered by the agency. He said he was selected by a person called Tiwari after his interview in Patna.

Others like Dwivedi had gone to Patna from various parts of the state, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan in December and January and paid almost Rs 8,000 as security deposit, registration and police verification. They received their offer letters in the first week of May asking them to report to an address in the city on May 18. None of the candidates selected were from Bihar.

The matter came to light when one of the victims, by chance, approached Shyamala Desai, a member of peace committee of Shivajinagar police station, who lives on Nargis Dutt Road. Desai then asked the victims to lodge a complaint at the police station.

Garunkumar Gautam (23) from Madhya Pradesh was called for an interview at Dina Towers near Hotel Republic, Exhibition Road in Patna. "We are trying to connect to the mobile numbers mentioned in the offer letters, but the phones have been switched off since May 6. We fear the company must have shut shop," he said.
PI Pandharinath Patil said: "About 25 of them have come forward to register a complaint. We have recorded their statements. We will contact the Bihar police and transfer the case to them as the offence took place in Patna."