Vadodara man ‘duped’ of Rs 97 lakh by men posing as astrologers

A 57-year-old resident of Vadodara was allegedly duped of Rs 97 lakh by a group of men who posed as astrologers promising solutions to his “lonely life as a bachelor”. The said money was transferred into various bank accounts through close to 90 online transactions in a span of three years.

According to the FIR filed by the Vadodara Cyber Crime cell, the complainant, who works in a government department, has stated that he received a phone call in January 2018, where the caller identified himself as an “astrologer from an organisation named Ram Janmabhoomi Ayodhya Vaidik Narayan Jyotish”.

The complainant has said, “He asked me what was bothering me and I confided in him that I lead a lonely life of a bachelor. He asked me for my birth details to prepare my horoscope. Later they told me that my stars were aligned to find a match with a woman aged 35 to 40 years and also beget sons. Two days later they called me and said that a renowned Maharaj would address my problems in a phone conversation… They told me that an evil spirit had cast its shadow on my family and there was a threat to the life of every surviving member.”

The complainant said he was given a series of “solutions” to resolve his problem which included sacrificing two buffaloes, a grand puja at the hands of agori saints, installing a statue of gold of his parents at home and a statue of Lord Vishwakarma. “Later, they informed me that one of the sadhus performing the rituals had died and to eliminate the hurdles from the rituals, it would be necessary to donate cows, as well as gather the water offered on 12 jyotirlingas located across India to offer for the peace of the soul of the said deceased brahmin. In addition, the complainant was also asked to donate copperware and some cash to 250 brahmins,” the complainant said. Deputy Commissioner of Police, Crime, Jaydeepsinh Jadeja said, “We are trailing the accused on the basis of the bank transactions, human intelligence and technology.”