Fake Ministry of Culture recruitment scam exposed

It began with a website that looked official, a recruitment notice that promised government jobs and a written examination conducted at a recognised test centre.
Behind this appearance, the Delhi Police say, was a fake recruitment racket designed to cheat job aspirants.The Intelligence Fusion and Strategic Operations (IFSO) unit of the Delhi Police arrested two men for allegedly running a fake recruitment drive in the name of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), Ministry of Culture. The accused created a forged website that closely resembled the official ASI portal and advertised seven posts of curator and 84 posts of junior assistant.

The police said links to the fake portal were circulated on college groups, social media platforms and messaging apps. Hundreds of candidates applied online. Around 150 were shortlisted for a written examination after the accused assessed their backgrounds.

To build trust, the accused booked an examination centre in Jaipur and conducted the test by following standard government exam procedures. The plan, the police said, was to call selected candidates for interviews and later demand money in exchange for appointment letters.

Before the interview stage could begin, the IFSO unit detected the scam through technical surveillance and intelligence inputs and moved in to stop it.

The main accused, Kuldeep, a Jaipur resident, and Piyush, who developed the fake website, were arrested. The police seized mobile phones, a laptop, a desktop computer, an iPad, a tablet and bank passbooks.

An FIR has been registered under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Further investigation is on to trace others involved.

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