The Central Crime Branch (CCB) has uncovered a fake mark sheet racket and arrested three individuals from Bengaluru, Dharwad, and Belagavi. The accused were reportedly operating a distance education academy with branches in all three cities and issuing counterfeit SSLC and PUC mark cards for around ₹20,000 each.
These forged documents were allegedly used to secure jobs in the transport and child welfare departments, and in some cases, even for passport applications. Soft copies of over 350 such marksheets were discovered on the mobile phones of the accused.
The arrested individuals have been identified as K.J. Monish (36) from Srinivasanagar, Banashankari 3rd Stage in Bengaluru; S. Prashanth Gundumi (41) of Chaitanya Nagar, Dharwad; and Rajashekar H. Ballari (41) from Lakshmeshwar in Gadag.
Investigations revealed that the accused enrolled students through correspondence and issued them mark cards without conducting exams. These were printed under the name “Karnataka State Council of Intermediate and Higher Education” at offices in Banashankari and Dharwad.
Interestingly, the departments that hired individuals based on these certificates had forwarded the documents back to the same academy for verification, where the accused falsely authenticated them as genuine. Authorities are now tracking individuals who might have secured government jobs using these fake documents. Many recipients were reportedly unaware of their inauthenticity.
The racket was exposed after a 46-year-old realtor from Palace Guttahalli approached the CCB in December. He had taken his nephew, who completed his 10th standard, to the Mercury Academy Distance Education Centre run by the accused. They were promised mark cards without the need for exams, claiming “connections in relevant departments.” When he returned to collect the document, he brought CCB officers along, leading to Monish’s arrest, followed by the other two.
Laptops, fake mark cards, and related materials have been seized, and police have appealed for public assistance in identifying any further misuse of such documents.
