AgenciesA shocking case of medical education fraud has emerged from Mehsana in north Gujarat, where a homeopath named Suresh Patel paid Rs 16.32 lakh for an MBBS degree from a university in Uttar Pradesh, only to realize it was forged. Patel received his degree and certificates within a month of full payment without attending any class or taking exams, leading him to approach the police in 2019. An FIR was registered on June 14, almost five years later.
In July 2018, Suresh Patel, aged 41, was exploring higher education opportunities in medicine online when he stumbled upon a website offering an MBBS degree through an entity called the All India Alternative Medical Council. Patel contacted the representative, Dr. Prem Kumar Rajput.
"Rajput assured me that I would get an MBBS degree based on my class 12 marks. I was sceptical... but he assured me that everything would be legal," said Patel. Rajput explained that Patel would undergo internships, take exams, and receive the degree in five years.
Patel decided to proceed and paid an initial amount of Rs 50,000. Following this, he received an admission letter from Bundelkhand University in Jhansi. Rajput continued to communicate with Patel, promising the assistance of three others - Dr. Sauket Khan, Dr. Anand Kumar, and Arun Kumar - to help him complete the MBBS course. Patel paid a total of Rs 16.32 lakh between July 10, 2018, and February 23, 2019, and waited for his classes to begin.
However, the classes never commenced. Instead, in March 2019, Patel received a package through courier that contained MBBS marksheets, a degree certificate, internship training certificates, and a registration certificate in his name, all bearing the stamp of the Medical Council of India (MCI).
Realizing he was deceived, Patel approached the MCI and discovered the documents were fraudulent. In 2019, he lodged a police complaint, which was then transferred to the Ahmedabad crime branch. "In 2019, I accompanied a Mehsana police team to Delhi where Dr. Anand Kumar supposedly lived and ran the organization, but there was no one at his address. We later went to the branch of a private bank in Delhi and gathered ample evidence that many others had also been cheated by the accused," Patel recounted.
Despite the initial efforts, the investigation stalled, and the accused were never apprehended. Patel continued to gather evidence and filed another complaint with the Mehsana SP's office in December 2023.
In July 2018, Suresh Patel, aged 41, was exploring higher education opportunities in medicine online when he stumbled upon a website offering an MBBS degree through an entity called the All India Alternative Medical Council. Patel contacted the representative, Dr. Prem Kumar Rajput.
"Rajput assured me that I would get an MBBS degree based on my class 12 marks. I was sceptical... but he assured me that everything would be legal," said Patel. Rajput explained that Patel would undergo internships, take exams, and receive the degree in five years.
Patel decided to proceed and paid an initial amount of Rs 50,000. Following this, he received an admission letter from Bundelkhand University in Jhansi. Rajput continued to communicate with Patel, promising the assistance of three others - Dr. Sauket Khan, Dr. Anand Kumar, and Arun Kumar - to help him complete the MBBS course. Patel paid a total of Rs 16.32 lakh between July 10, 2018, and February 23, 2019, and waited for his classes to begin.
However, the classes never commenced. Instead, in March 2019, Patel received a package through courier that contained MBBS marksheets, a degree certificate, internship training certificates, and a registration certificate in his name, all bearing the stamp of the Medical Council of India (MCI).
Realizing he was deceived, Patel approached the MCI and discovered the documents were fraudulent. In 2019, he lodged a police complaint, which was then transferred to the Ahmedabad crime branch. "In 2019, I accompanied a Mehsana police team to Delhi where Dr. Anand Kumar supposedly lived and ran the organization, but there was no one at his address. We later went to the branch of a private bank in Delhi and gathered ample evidence that many others had also been cheated by the accused," Patel recounted.
Despite the initial efforts, the investigation stalled, and the accused were never apprehended. Patel continued to gather evidence and filed another complaint with the Mehsana SP's office in December 2023.
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