Man uses CM’s name to con cop’s wife

The man told her that there was a vacancy for a telephone operator post and that he could help her get the job if she pays ₹6 lakh

MUMBAI: The police booked a man on Thursday for duping a police constable’s wife of ₹5.89 lakh by promising her a government job by claiming that he was close to chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde.

Man uses CM’s name to con cop’s wife

According to the police, the complainant is the wife of a police constable at Vikhroli police station. When the couple was going to their native place in Satara in a four-wheeler, a man asked for a lift in Vashi. The man, identified as Ketan Bhosale, befriended the couple and told them that there was a vacancy for a telephone operator post in the water resources department in Pune and that he could help her get the job using his influence as he was close to Fadnavis and Shinde. Bhosale said he was going to attend a relative’s wedding in Koregaon taluka in Satara and got out of the car near his village. Bhosale kept in touch with the constable after that day.

Bhosale told the constable that some amount had to be paid to secure the job. The couple then paid an amount of ₹5.89 lakh in six installments, said a police officer. In April this year, Bhosale met the couple near Vikhroli police station and showed them a sealed envelope claiming that it was the appointment letter, which required the signature of the head of the water resources department.

“In May, when she asked Bhosale about the job, he kept giving excuses. Later, he told her that the work could not be done and that he would return the money soon. He then stopped answering the couple’s calls and eventually blocked them,” said senior inspector Rajesh Kewale of the Pant Nagar police station.

The constable’s wife approached the Pant Nagar police on Thursday. Based on her complaint, the police registered an FIR against Bhosale under sections 316 (breach of trust) and 318 (4) (cheating) of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.