40 fake degrees seized as VB raids academy in Jalandhar

Vigilance bureau seized about 40 fake degrees and certificates during a raid at a private institute, Sai Academy, on Sultanwind road on Friday.

Vigilance bureau seized about 40 fake degrees and certificates during a raid at a private institute, Sai Academy, on Sultanwind road on Friday. The degrees and certificates seized had CMJ University, Meghalya, and North Orissa University of Agriculture and Technology written on them. Vigilance officials say the documents were fake as the said universities don’t offer courses the certificates had been issued for.

The owners of the institute, Rajesh Gupta and Sidhant Gupta, are absconding.

The raid was in response to a complaint lodged by a woman, who had lost her job in the police department after her BA degree was found to be fake.

Amandeep Kaur of Pandori Waraich village had been appointed as clerk in the Punjab Police on compassionate ground after her father Sucha Singh, a head constable, died.

Her appointment was cancelled after her BA degree provided by Sai Academy was found to be fake. She then lodged a complaint against the academy with the vigilance bureau.

Addressing a press conference here, vigilance bureau senior superintendent of police (Amritsar range) Ketan Bali Ram Patil said acting on the complaint, a team raided the academy on Friday morning. When the team reached the academy only a receptionist was there, he said.

The team seized as many as 40 fake degrees and certificates.

The SSP said the antecedents of the academy owners are not known and they may be from Ahmedabad. The owners have been booked for fraud, criminal conspiracy and other offences. The academy is being run since 2010.

“Apart from this, the owners were charging lakhs of rupees for masters and PhD degrees,” said DSP (VB) Navjot Singh. The bureau has appealed to the public to call 0183-2210413 if they had any inputs regarding the academy.