At least three students from Kolkata have been cheated with false promises of getting them admitted at medical colleges in Ukraine, Russia and Bangladesh.
Police arrested one person in connection with this case on Thursday night. The alleged racket was being operated from an office on EM Bypass in Mukundapur on the eastern fringes of the city, police said.
“The accused, Dipanjan Nag, had opened an office in Mukundapur. He would lure students, and their guardians, with the false promise of getting them admitted to medical colleges in countries, including Ukraine, Russia and Bangladesh. He would target students who were willing to pursue medical studies abroad even if it costs a fortune,” said an officer of Purba Jadavpur police station.
Nag had allegedly taken Rs 20 lakh as advance from a family from Purba Jadavpur, promising their son a berth in a medical college in Russia.
The family realised that they had been duped when he stopped taking their calls after receiving the payment and was not found at his Kasba home. There are two more complaints against him, an officer of Kolkata police said. The police said he would show guardians the websites of various medical colleges and universities in Russia, Ukraine and Bangladesh and claim that he had contacts in those institutes.
“Once a family would agree to make the payments in instalments, he would get them connected to people abroad, giving them the impression that they were speaking with officials of the university,” said the officer.
Nag, a resident of Kasba, opened his office in 2020, the police said. However, it was only this year that complaints were filed against him. An officer at Lalbazar said one of the complaints against Nag was lodged with Purba Jadavpur police station and the other two with Kasba and Garfa police stations.
“He would forge prospectuses of various medical colleges abroad to cheat students and their parents and take Rs 20 lakh from each of the victims,” the officer said.
Senior officers said the actual number of people cheated by Nag could be more than the formal complaints that have surfaced till now. The police also suspect that Nag was part of a larger racket.
“The prime accused was missing from his house for several months. Yesterday, we received information that he had returned home, following which we raided his house and arrested him,” said an officer of Purba Jadavpur police station.
The police said they had been advising guardians not to pay anyone who is offering admission in colleges and universities. “One should follow the procedure and contact the institutes directly,” the officier said.
