KOLLAM: Education consultancies that offer “shortcuts to success” will be under the scanner in the light of the recent police operation against the mafia in Kollam.
One such racket was busted after a consultancy in Thrissur revealed that the fake certificates they distributed to its students were from ‘Modern education consultancy’ at Kadappakkada in Kollam.
Kollam east police had arrested the owner of Modern group, James George, who impersonated himself as the bishop of Bharatheeya Orthodox Sabha under the name Dr Yacob Mar Gregorios, in connection with the incident on Thursday. He had been running various educational institutions in Kollam for the last three decades.
“We took the bishop into custody for further questioning and all those associated with him will be booked. The kingpin in this racket is yet to be arrested,” CI B. Pankajakshan, told DC.
The police also took into custody Udayakumar of Kattachal in Chathannoor, an office staff with the ‘Modern group’. The certificates distributed by the mafia were designed and printed in Delhi and arranged by a key link based in Bangalore. He used to send the certificates through courier service.
The police confiscated bunches of fake certificates from its office. In most cases, the “customers” also demanded fake certificates that would fetch them jobs abroad without verification. Police say that no complaint has been given by any student registered with the fake centres.
The group charged around Rs 8,000 for ITC and diploma certificates while Rs 50,000 and above for degree and professional courses, including B.Tech and M.Tech.
The customers also got marklists of the course along with “original certificates” with hologram for the desired year.
