Man posing as IAS officer held for duping job seekers in Gurugram

Acting on a tip-off, Palam Vihar police station team, led by station house officer, inspector Bijender Singh, raided a rented accommodation where Pathak was staying

Gurugram police on Friday arrested a 31-year-old man for allegedly impersonating an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer to extort money from people by promising government jobs, facilitating employee transfers, and misusing his fake identity to wield influence.

The accused was booked under relevant sections for charges of impersonation, cheating, and possession of forged documents, and will be produced before a court on Friday. (File photo)

The accused identified as Jai Prakash Pathak, a resident of Raghui Pur village in Uttar Pradesh’s Pratapgarh, has studied up to Class 12. According to police, Pathak used fake documents, a forged arms licence and a vehicle fitted with “Government of India” insignia to lure people by promising jobs or transfers, charging them large sums of money.

Acting on a tip-off, Palam Vihar police station team, led by station house officer, inspector Bijender Singh, raided a rented accommodation where Pathak was staying. He tried to escape using the rooftop but was caught.

Two identity cards, one with a lanyard marked “Ministry of Home Affairs”, an envelope linked to the transfer of an additional inspector, and a fake arms licence were recovered. “Six mobile phones, a laptop, a walkie-talkie set, an Ayushman Bharat card, three Aadhaar cards, an ATM card, a PAN card, a passport, two official seals, red and blue beacon lights, ₹2.5 lakh in cash, and a car with “Government of India” markings were also seized,” said Sandeep Kumar, Gurugram police spokesperson.

The accused was booked under relevant sections for charges of impersonation, cheating, and possession of forged documents, and will be produced before a court on Friday. He was remanded in police custody for two days.

Preliminary investigations revealed that Pathak is also wanted in a similar case in Uttar Pradesh, where he had allegedly posed as a senior official to defraud victims. Police are questioning him to know if he is involved in more such cases. “We are questioning him to identify his victims and to determine the extent of his network,” said a senior police officer, adding that further investigation is underway.