Bengaluru: Conman uses Raj Bhavan name, dupes BJP leader

Three people, including the state general secretary of the BJP Yuva Morcha, were cheated by a conman who pretended to be an under-secretary in the Raj Bhavan and promised to make them senate members in state universities.

The impersonator, Sadrullah Khan, created a fake letterhead of the Governor's office and issued orders appointing senate members to the Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences (RGUHS). He was arrested by the Central Crime Branch (CCB), a senior police officer said.

A Raj Bhavan official said this is the first time someone had "misused" the name of the Raj Bhavan to defraud gullible people aspiring for a membership in the senate.

Dr Mallikarjun Balikai, one of the two general secretaries in the BJP state Yuva Morcha, was contacted by Khan and offered senate membership. Dr Balikai, who hails from Hubballi, initially ignored Khan's phone calls. But he had to take him seriously after "a senior leader from the party" intervened. The "senior leader" asked Dr Balikai to share his details with Khan.

Dr Balikai shared the details and immediately paid Khan Rs 96,000 towards university funds. Of this, he paid Rs 85,360 by bank transfer and the rest by Google Pay. Khan promised to issue the appointment letter within two to three days but didn't keep his word.

Dr Balikai then contacted the "senior leader" who said Khan was a fraud and asked him to stay away from him. Asked why he paid the money and fell for the scam, Dr Balikai told DH: "I trusted him because our senior leader said so."

Dr Balikai then contacted Raj Bhavan. On Thursday, the CCB called him to its office in Bengaluru and took his statement. Khan was in the CCB custody, he added.

Khan cheated two more people — Santosh S and Geetha Shashikumar —according to the police complaint filed by R Prabhu Shankar, Special Commissioner to Governor.

Prabhu Shankar claimed that it was the first time a conman had "misused" the Raj Bhavan's name to cheat prospective senate members.

"We have nothing to do with it. The list of all officials in the Governor's secretariat is available online," he told DH.

Senate membership is coveted by many because of the powers and influence it brings. Under the Karnataka Universities Act, the Governor, who is the chancellor of all universities in Karnataka, can nominate two members "from among eminent educationists, or persons from commerce, banking, industry or other professions".

In the case of the RGUHS, the Governor can nominate six people from among people having special interest in health sciences.

Karan Kumar, a syndicate member at the Bengaluru City University, said, "It's an honorary position but some syndicate members take money from colleges that apply for affiliation or renewal of affiliation. For pecuniary gains, syndicate members are ready to compromise with the quality of education," he said.