Fake certificate accused says he helped girls and boys find eligible grooms and brides

By Sanghamitra Pradhan

Bhubaneswar, Aug. 11:Anant Pradhan, one of the key members of the fake certificate racket caught on Friday evening, told police during interrogation on Saturday that a majority of his “clients” were “half-educated” girls who wanted higher secondary, degree and post graduation certificates to get “eligible” grooms.

“Parents and even unmarried girls used to approach us for certificates to get educated grooms. Many of the girls who got certificates from us are well-settled now with educated and high-salaried employees,” Anant told the police during interrogation.

Elaborating detail about the interrogation, Kharavela Nagar inspector Bishu Prasad Das said the accused had also said that some young men had obtained fake certificates so as to marry educated and beautiful girls.

Anant, his friends Nilamadhab Mishra and Panchanan Senapati were arrested on Friday evening by the Bhubaneswar police after investigation revealed that the duo headed a fake certificate syndicate operating in Orissa and its neighbouring states. They were forwarded to court on Saturday.

The duo successfully duplicated certificates of prominent colleges and universities and sold them to “customers” at hefty prices ranging between Rs 5,000 to Rs 10,000 per copy, the police said, adding, even in some cases certificates were sold at around Rs 20,000.

Interestingly, Pradhan, Mishra and Senapati would introduce themselves to customers as journalists of local Oriya newspapers.

Following close on the heels of the fake medicine racket, the latest education certificate fraud has put the education department in a fix. The higher education minister Samir Dey has directed the officers at various levels, including the varsity heads to initiate a probe.

The kingpin of the fake certificate network, Braja Kishore Jena is still absconding, police said.

Several stamps, CDs, a laptops, forged certificates and mark-sheets were seized.

Those two arrested hail from Balasore district. Pradhan has confessed before the police that he used to contact prospective customers and negotiate the price, while Jena was instrumental in issuing forged documents.