Rajasthan Police arrest 2 Bengal men for siphoning off minority scholarship funds

THe Rajasthan law feature arrested 2 people from westward Bengal for allegedly siphoning away funds meant for minority students through fake applications and forged digital records.Police superintendent Harsh Vardhan Agarwala said the action followed a complaint from Ajmer’s minority welfare officer, alleging that scholarships under the Union government’s schemes were embezzled in 2021-22 and 2022-23. False information was allegedly entered on the National Scholarship Portal (NSP) to fraudulently claim benefits in the names of minority students.A Special Investigation Team (SIT) formed to probe the matter used technical evidence and cyber tracking to trace the two suspects, Tawabar Rahman, 35, and Sahajaman, 25, to Uttar Dinajpur district in West Bengal. The suspects have been brought to Ajmer.Police investigation showed the two exploited loopholes in the online application and document verification system. They allegedly collected information online, used fake mobile SIM cards and Aadhaar-related details to submit fraudulent scholarship applications and divert the money into their accounts.Police said they seized 85 mobile SIM cards, two laptops, two printers, seven fingerprint scanners, ATM cards, three mobile phones, and other digital devices from the two. Forged documents and personal data were found stored in the gadgets.SIT in-charge Shivam Joshi said preliminary investigation indicated large-scale irregularities under the scholarship scheme in Rajasthan. In the initial phase, the probe found that over ₹5 lakh was siphoned off through bank accounts mainly in the Ajmer district.Police suspect the accused took advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic, when physical verification was limited, and most processes shifted online, to execute the fraud without drawing attention. Joshi said the accused created an organised fake database using forged fingerprints and fabricated identity records.Police found that the digital devices contained details of around 2,100 bank account numbers and account holders, nearly 1,000 fingerprints, 2,000 Aadhaar cards along with photographs, and around 1,500 stamp images. Investigators believe all these documents are fake and were being used as part of a larger organised racket.The arrested accused have been sent to judicial custody after police remand. Police teams continued raids to nab four to five absconding members of the gang.Officials said the case is unique as it involves a highly organised attempt to manipulate the central scholarship portal using forged digital identities and biometric data.Top Rajasthan officials were closely monitoring the matter as the police continued their investigation to identify the full network, its financial trail, and possible links in other districts.