Latest news with #Chandraswami
NDTV
14 hours ago
- NDTV
Two Fake Embassy Victims, Duped Of Rs 9 Lakh In Total, Reveal Ordeal
Two victims of the Ghaziabad fake embassy case have revealed their ordeal to the investigation agencies - one was duped of Rs 7 lakh and the other of Rs 2 lakh under the pretext of employment. According to officials, the arrested mastermind of the racket, Harshvardhan Jain, had promised them jobs abroad. One victim is a resident of Delhi who gave Jain Rs 7 lakh in many installments for getting a job in Iraq. Another person is from Uttar Pradesh's Deoria, who had given Jain Rs 2 lakh. Jain was arrested by the Special Task Force (STF) of Uttar Pradesh Police last week for impersonating an ambassador and allegedly duping people by promising overseas employment. The 47-year-old accused claimed to have acted as an adviser or ambassador to various non-existent or unrecognised 'micronations' such as "Westarctica", "Saborga", "Lodonia" or "Poulvia". Officials said that Jain and his aide, Ehsan Ali Syed, had opened 22 shell companies in India and abroad. Many of these companies had names resembling well-known brands to mislead and trap victims. The names included East India Company UK Ltd, State Trading Corporation UK, Island General Trading in Dubai, Indira Overseas Ltd in Mauritius, and Cameroon Ispat SARL in Cameroon. Additionally, cops said that Jain has at least 11 bank accounts - six in Dubai, three in Mauritius, one each in London and India. They are probing Jain's possible link to a scam worth nearly Rs 300 crore, 162 foreign trips in 10 years, and multiple overseas bank accounts. The STF recovered four cars with diplomatic number plates, 'diplomatic passports' of 12 micronations, documents with stamps of the External Affairs Ministry, stamps of 34 nations, Rs 44 lakh in cash, foreign currency, 18 diplomatic number plates, and a luxury watch collection from Jain's rented premises in Ghaziabad. During the raids, the police also found photos of Jain with controversial "godman" Chandraswami and Saudi arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi. Further investigation revealed that it was Chandraswami who introduced Jain to Khassogi and conman Syed.
Hindustan Times
17 hours ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Ghaziabad court grants 5-day custody of fake envoy; STF probing foreign links
A Ghaziabad court on Monday granted a five-day police custody remand (PCR) of Harsha Vardhan Jain, accused of impersonating a diplomat representing multiple self-declared or fictitious micronations and running a fake consulate from his rented residence in Kavi Nagar. The remand, granted on the request of the special task force (STF), will be in effect from July 29 to August 2. Harsha Vardhan Jain, the accused. (HT Photos) 'We need to probe many details about the recoveries and other incriminating documents seized from his rented house. A PCR was requested for five days, and a Ghaziabad court allowed the remand,' said Bhaskar Verma, assistant commissioner of police (ACP), Kavi Nagar circle. 'During this period, Jain will be questioned in detail,' he added. According to police, Jain was arrested on July 22 from his residence after an FIR was lodged against him at Kavi Nagar police station under sections 318(4) (cheating), 336(3) (forgery), 338 (forgery of valuable security), and 340(2) (use of forged documents or electronic records) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). During the raid at his house, police recovered ₹44.7 lakh in cash, four luxury vehicles bearing fake diplomatic number plates, forged documents allegedly linked to foreign ministries, 34 seals of different micronations, some of which were fictitious, 20 number plates with diplomatic tags, and 12 passports. Several of these materials, police said, were used to support his false claims of diplomatic status. Officials said Jain, 47, had allegedly been posing as an envoy for several unrecognised micronations—including Westarctica, Seborga, Ladonia, and the fictional virtual state of Paulovia—and using these claims to establish a fraudulent consular setup in Ghaziabad. According to investigators, Jain first came into contact with controversial godman Chandraswami in London around 2000. Chandraswami allegedly introduced him to Saudi arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi and Syed Ehsan Ali, a Hyderabad-born associate who was convicted in Switzerland last year for financial fraud involving offshore companies. 'During police custody remand, Jain will be questioned about offshore accounts and firms and his links with Ali, Chandraswami, and Khashoggi. A lot of details are present in a diary recovered during his arrest,' said an STF investigator. 'We have also come to know about many offshore companies that had names similar to Indian corporate and government identities. We will try to gather a lot of details about these companies.' Investigators said Jain had taken up to 150–200 foreign trips to over 30 countries and is believed to have co-founded several overseas firms with Ali. The STF has already approached Interpol for issuance of a Blue Corner Notice to trace Jain's international operations and network.
Mint
2 days ago
- Politics
- Mint
Fake embassy case: ‘Westarctica diplomat' Harsh Vardhan Jain linked to godman, Saudi arms dealer, and ₹300 crore fraud
An investigation against Harsh Vardhan Jain, arrested for running an illegal embassy in Ghaziabad, has revealed potential links to a ₹ 300 crore scam, a controversial 'godman' Chandraswami, and a Saudi arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi. Jain was arrested by the Special Task Force (STF) on July 22, after conducting raids at his rented bungalow in Ghaziabad's Kavinagar area. During the raid, a fake embassy (Westarctica) setup was discovered, ₹ 44.7 lakh was recovered in cash, along with multiple foreign currencies, fake diplomatic passports, 18 forged diplomatic number plates, and seals purportedly from the Ministry of External Affairs, and firms in 34 countries. A senior police officer, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told PTI that police are also looking into Jain's liaisoning network. 'His association and photographs with international arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi have surfaced during the preliminary probe,' the officer said. "Authorities suspect there may be a counter-intelligence angle involved, and several incriminating documents have been recovered," the officer added. According to a Hindustan Times report, pictures of Jain with the controversial 'godman' Chandraswami were also recovered during the raid at his Ghaziabad home. Chandraswami gained prominence in the 80s and 90s and was considered to be the spiritual adviser of three former prime ministers – PV Narasimha Rao, Chandra Shekhar, and VP Singh. However, Chandraswami was arrested in 1996 in connection with financial irregularities. He was also accused of funding the assassination of Rahul Gandhi. A raid at Chandraswami's ashram also revealed his links to arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi. During the probe, the UP ATS found that Chandraswami had introduced Jain to Khashoggi and Ahsan Ali Sayed in 2000 in London. Sayed allegedly worked with the fake diplomat to open 25 shell companies which were used for brokering deals, the HT reported quoted UP Police additional director general (ADG), Law and Order, Amitabh Yash, as saying. Sayed also operated a company called Western Advisory Group, based out of Switzerland, which worked with other companies to help them procure loans in exchange for brokerage. According to an NDTV report, the company allegedly collected brokerage worth nearly ₹ 300 crore and Syed fled from the country. He was arrested in London in 2022. Cops are now looking into the degree of Jain's involvement in the ₹ 300 crore scam on Swiss territory. Given his links to Khashoggi, UP STF Additional Superintendent of Police Kumar Mishra said Jain's involvement in arms dealing is also under investigation. The police have also taken note of a purported 'official statement' issued by 'Westarctica' on Friday in which the micronation (a self-declared entity but unregonised officially) distanced itself from Harsh Vardhan Jain, new agency PTI reported. "Jain was an authorised representative engaging in unauthorised activities," the statement from "Westarctica" said, clarifying that while Jain held the honourary title of "Honorary Consul to India" after making a donation in 2016, he was "never granted ambassadorial status". Founded in 2001 by former US Navy intelligence analyst Travis McHenry, "Westarctica" functions primarily as an environmental advocacy nonprofit registered in the US, with tax-exempt status since 2018, the report added. "Although they have issued a statement but its status as a nation is unrecognised therefore the statement holds zero value for us. However, we are getting it legally vetted for further perusal," a police officer, involved in the probe, told PTI.
Mint
2 days ago
- Politics
- Mint
Fake embassy case: ‘Westarctica diplomat' Harsh Vardhan Jain linked to godman, Saudi arms dealer, and ₹300 crore fraud
An investigation against Harsh Vardhan Jain, arrested for running an illegal embassy in Ghaziabad, has revealed potential links to a ₹ 300 crore scam, a controversial 'godman' Chandraswami, and a Saudi arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi. Jain was arrested by the Special Task Force (STF) on July 22, after conducting raids at his rented bungalow in Ghaziabad's Kavinagar area. During the raid, a fake embassy (Westarctica) setup was discovered, ₹ 44.7 lakh was recovered in cash, along with multiple foreign currencies, fake diplomatic passports, 18 forged diplomatic number plates, and seals purportedly from the Ministry of External Affairs, and firms in 34 countries. A senior police officer, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told PTI that police are also looking into Jain's liaisoning network. 'His association and photographs with international arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi have surfaced during the preliminary probe,' the officer said. "Authorities suspect there may be a counter-intelligence angle involved, and several incriminating documents have been recovered," the officer added. According to a Hindustan Times report, pictures of Jain with the controversial 'godman' Chandraswami were also recovered during the raid at his Ghaziabad home. Chandraswami gained prominence in the 80s and 90s and was considered to be the spiritual adviser of three former prime ministers – PV Narasimha Rao, Chandra Shekhar, and VP Singh. However, Chandraswami was arrested in 1996 in connection with financial irregularities. He was also accused of funding the assassination of Rahul Gandhi. A raid at Chandraswami's ashram also revealed his links to arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi. During the probe, the UP ATS found that Chandraswami had introduced Jain to Khashoggi and Ahsan Ali Sayed in 2000 in London. Sayed allegedly worked with the fake diplomat to open 25 shell companies which were used for brokering deals, the HT reported quoted UP Police additional director general (ADG), Law and Order, Amitabh Yash, as saying. Sayed also operated a company called Western Advisory Group, based out of Switzerland, which worked with other companies to help them procure loans in exchange for brokerage. According to an NDTV report, the company allegedly collected brokerage worth nearly ₹ 300 crore and Syed fled from the country. He was arrested in London in 2022. Cops are now looking into the degree of Jain's involvement in the ₹ 300 crore scam on Swiss territory. Given his links to Khashoggi, UP STF Additional Superintendent of Police Kumar Mishra said Jain's involvement in arms dealing is also under investigation. The police have also taken note of a purported 'official statement' issued by 'Westarctica' on Friday in which the micronation (a self-declared entity but unregonised officially) distanced itself from Harsh Vardhan Jain, new agency PTI reported. "Jain was an authorised representative engaging in unauthorised activities," the statement from "Westarctica" said, clarifying that while Jain held the honourary title of "Honorary Consul to India" after making a donation in 2016, he was "never granted ambassadorial status". Founded in 2001 by former US Navy intelligence analyst Travis McHenry, "Westarctica" functions primarily as an environmental advocacy nonprofit registered in the US, with tax-exempt status since 2018, the report added. "Although they have issued a statement but its status as a nation is unrecognised therefore the statement holds zero value for us. However, we are getting it legally vetted for further perusal," a police officer, involved in the probe, told PTI. Jain had also styled himself as an ambassador to other fictitious entities like "Saborga", "Paulovia" and "Lodonia", allegedly defrauding individuals under the pretense of offering overseas jobs and visas.
Hindustan Times
2 days ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
'Westarctica' diplomat case: Fake Ghaziabad embassy kingpin tied to godman, arms dealer, ₹300 cr fraud
The investigation against Harsha Vardhan Jain, who has been arrested by the Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) for running a fake embassy in Ghaziabad, has revealed potential links to a ₹300 crore scam. Harshvardhan Jain was found in possession of forged documents, foreign currency, and several other materials, which he probably used to run his hawala racket. During the raid on Jain's fake embassy in Ghaziabad's Kavi Nagar, police recovered pictures of him with controversial 'godman' Chandraswami and Saudi arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi. Chandraswami gained prominence in the 80s and 90s and was considered to be the spiritual adviser of three former prime ministers – PV Narasimha Rao, Chandra Shekhar and VP Singh. However, he was arrested in 1996 in connection with financial irregularities. He was also accused of funding the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi. A raid at his ashram also revealed his links to arms dealer Khashoggi. The UP ATS, during the probe, found that Chandraswami had introduced Jain to Khashoggi and Ahsan Ali Sayed in 2000 in London. Sayed allegedly worked with the fake diplomat to open 25 shell companies which were used for brokering deals, UP Police additional director general (ADG), Law and Order, Amitabh Yash, said. Sayed also operated a company called Western Advisory Group, based out of Switzerland, which worked with other companies to help them procure loans in exchange for brokerage. The company allegedly collected brokerage worth nearly ₹300 crore (25 million pounds) and fled from the country, following which Sayed was arrested in London in 2022, NDTV reported. The police are now probing the degree of Jain's involvement in the ₹300 crore scam on Swiss territory. His involvement in arms dealing is also under the scanner given his links to Khashoggi, UP-STF additional superintendent of police Raj Kumar Mishra said. Who is 'Westarctica diplomat' Harshvardhan Jain? Harsha Vardhan Jain is reportedly an MBA graduate from the London College of Applied Science. He had been running a fake embassy for micronations such as 'Westarctica', which are not recognised by any state for seven years. He claimed to be a consul/ambassador for non-existent countries like Saborga, Poulvia, and Lodonia. He is the son of a businessman in Ghaziabad, and his family owned marble mines in Rajasthan. However, after his father's passing away, the family faced financial challenges and Jain met Chandraswami, who helped him move to London and open several companies. After the godman's death, Jain came back to Ghaziabad and began running the fake embassy. During the raid on his premises, the police seized four luxury cars with fake diplomatic number plates, forged documents, foreign currency, and other materials used to run his hawala racket.
