Rohini Court Orders FIR Against DU Professors in ₹1 Lakh Job Fraud Case
On July 1, the Rohini Courts in New Delhi ordered the city police to register a case and investigate three individuals, including two Delhi University assistant professors, for allegedly cheating a woman of ₹1 lakh by promising her a teaching job using forged documents.
Judicial Magistrate First Class Gaurav Katariya directed the police to lodge a First Information Report (FIR). The judge stated that an investigation was necessary to determine if there are other victims of what appears to be an organized and pre-planned job-fraud racket targeting employment seekers.
The order was issued following an application filed by a 28-year-old woman through her advocates, Pradeep Khatri and Pranjal Bhaskar. The complainant is a former assistant professor in the Department of Political Science at Delhi University's Bharti College.
According to the complaint, the woman met a person who claimed to be a doctor at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS). This individual introduced her to two others: an assistant professor at Dayal Singh College and an assistant professor at Bharti College.
The three accused allegedly convinced the woman to pay ₹1 lakh to secure the publication of research articles in reputed academic journals, representing it as a mandatory requirement for the teaching job.
The complainant stated that the accused assisted her in filling out application forms and publishing three research articles. She was subsequently selected as an assistant professor on November 23, 2023.
However, on August 8, 2024, the college principal informed her that a Right to Information (RTI) enquiry had revealed her published articles were fake. The university then issued her a show-cause notice regarding the fabrication of her credentials.
When confronted, the accused claimed the articles were clone copies published through a third party, but the complainant could not find any legitimate address for the publisher. The accused then allegedly demanded ₹25 lakh from her to help her regain her employment.
The woman was terminated from her job on October 29, 2024. She approached the court after the police allegedly failed to take action on her initial complaint.
In the court order, Judicial Magistrate First Class Katariya noted that the accused had allegedly provided the complainant with fake journal copies and forged publication certificates. The court observed that the deliberate supply of fake certificates points to a dishonest and fraudulent state of mind on the part of all three accused.
