New Delhi, June 20: In a major breakthrough, Delhi Police has arrested a habitual impersonator who allegedly posed as an Additional District Magistrate (ADM) and cheated multiple individuals to the tune of Rs 60 lakh on the pretext of securing government jobs and arranging land allotments.

According to an official press release issued by the office of the Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central District), the accused identified as Pawan Kumar Pandey @ Varun Kumar Pandey, a resident of Gandhi Vihar, Delhi, aged 43 years, was apprehended by a dedicated team from PP Sidhipura, PS DBG Road.

The police stated that the accused “posed as an Additional District Magistrate and preyed on trust,” deceiving victims by projecting himself as a senior government officer with close links to top officials.

The case originated from a complaint received on 23.03.2026 at PP Sidhipura, wherein the accused allegedly introduced himself as “Varun Kumar Pandey, ADM, Uttar Pradesh.” He is accused of falsely assuring victims of government jobs and allotment of plots in Noida under official schemes.

The press note stated that “cheating of approximately ₹60 lakh on the pretext of government jobs and land allotment was exposed.” Based on the complaint, FIR No. 206/2026 was registered under relevant Sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including Sections 318(4), 316(2), 319(2), 204 and 61(2).

Police said multiple forged identity cards, visiting cards and documents were recovered during the investigation. The accused had also created a strong digital footprint using WhatsApp chats, audio recordings, screenshots and e-Sakshya video evidence.

Officials added that a “financial trail was established through bank accounts and UPI transactions,” confirming receipt of large sums of money from victims through intermediaries. Investigators also identified assets purchased from proceeds of crime, including a Swift car and a scooty.

During verification, police found that the accused had been using the identity of a real PCS officer. A senior officer noted that verification with Varun Kumar Pandey, PCS (2015 batch), former ADM Jhansi, confirmed misuse of his identity and designation.

The accused allegedly used publicly available information and photographs to convincingly project himself as an ADM posted at different locations, including Lodhi Road, and to support earlier claims of having served in Uttar Pradesh.

During interrogation, the accused admitted to impersonating an ADM for several years and using forged documents to gain trust and cheat victims. He allegedly projected “close links with senior government officers” and used intermediaries to collect money.

The accused is also linked to a previous FIR registered in 2019 at PS Sahibabad under multiple IPC Sections.

The press release stated that “role of other associates and additional victims is under investigation.” Authorities are also examining additional financial transactions and possible wider networks involved in the fraud.

The operation was conducted under the supervision of senior police officials of Central District, with sustained technical surveillance and coordinated digital analysis leading to the arrest.

Further investigation is underway to trace more victims and uncover the full extent of the fraud.

New Delhi, June 20: Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi tore into the National Testing Agency (NTA) on Saturday, over a shocking anomaly in the admit card of a NEET (National Eligibility cum Entrance Test) aspirant, just a day ahead of the re-examinations.

Coming down hard on the examination body, Rahul accused it of “gambling” with the children’s future and said that despite bungling up on the previous occasion, it didn’t get its act together, thereby burdening the already stressed children and their parents.

The controversy erupted after a NEET aspirant in Nagpur was reportedly found to have been allotted an examination centre in Abu Dhabi for the re-test scheduled on June 21, 2026. The mega blunder by NTA has hogged national attention and is drawing backlash and criticism from the student community.

Nagpur-based candidate named Abdullah Mohammad Talib discovered the discrepancy while downloading his Re-NEET 2026 admit card from the official website. Instead of being assigned a centre in his city, his admit card mentioned an examination centre in Abu Dhabi, UAE.

As the matter kicked up a row, the NTA sought to downplay the issue and assured that “the grievance is being addressed and the candidate will be allocated a centre in Nagpur, after due verification, in the next few hours.”

Rahul Gandhi expressed dismay over the embarrassing incident, happening just a day before exams, and over student’s emotional turmoil.

He said that the student, being at the receiving end of NTA’s mismanagement, cried all night and is reluctant to take the exams.

“What kind of stress is this? Can you even imagine? The NTA is actually just testing the patience of the country’s children and their parents,” Rahul said in a post on X.

Hitting out at the ‘broken’ education system, the Congress leader said that he raised the matter earlier also, during his interaction with students in Kota and said, “This is nothing but extortion of an entire generation’s money, time, and mental peace.”

Further stepping up the heat on the NTA, he said, “Stop gambling with our children’s future. They deserve a sensitive, responsible, and accountable education system and exam authority.”

New Delhi, June 19: The Department of Social Justice & Empowerment has removed the requirement for a domicile certificate for students applying under Pre‑Matric and Post‑Matric scholarship schemes for Scheduled Caste and Other Backward Classes, an official statement said on Friday.

This step is expected to reduce the compliance burden on students and simplify the application process for scholarships, enabling easier access to benefits.

Thousands of eligible applicants across the country who study in institutions other than their domicile states will be benefitted, the statement from Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment said.

Under the Pre-Matric and Post-Matric Scholarship Schemes for SCs and OBCs, nearly 1.2 crore students receive scholarship benefits annually. The removal of domicile certificate requirements will make the application process more student-friendly by reducing documentation requirements and lowering compliance costs.

Further strengthening digital governance, the Department has launched SETU (Scholarship for Educational Transformation and Upliftment) on the UMANG platform as a comprehensive solution for scholarship-related services.

The platform provides a single interface to the eligible applicants, Institutional Nodal Officers, District Nodal Officers and State officials for application registration, tracking, and validation of other services, improving transparency and efficiency.

“These initiatives are aligned with the government’s broader objective of promoting inclusion, reducing procedural barriers, and ensuring effective delivery of welfare schemes,” the statement noted.

The Department remains committed to leveraging technology-driven reforms to enhance outreach and provide timely support to students, it added.

A total of Rs 7,981.47 crore has been disbursed to over 75 lakh scheduled caste (SC) beneficiaries in FY26, an official statement said in April.

The funds were disbursed as part of schemes run by the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment focused on the educational empowerment of marginalised students belonging to Scheduled Castes.

Across key scholarship programs, expenditure rose year‑on‑year, with a 21 per cent increase under the Pre Matric Scholarship Scheme for SCs and Others, an 11.23 per cent increase under the Post Matric Scholarship Scheme for SCs, a rise of 13.5 per cent under Central Sector Scholarship of Top Class Education for SC students.