Fake Phalke Awards & Fake PhDs too.
Unmesh Gujarathi
Editor in Chief
He is a roadside tea seller but is scooping up awards as fast as he hands out cutting chai. At a glittering event on June 24, in Dubai, Dolly the Chaiwalla received his latest honour, the Dadasaheb Phalke Icon Award, placing him in the same league as Indian film legends such as Prithviraj Kapoor, Lata Mangeshkar, Dev Anand, Asha Parekh and Amitabh Bachchan. Well, not quite. Sprouts has shocking details about fake Phalke awards that you will find hard to believe.
Look closely at the name of the award mentioned above and you’ll notice the word ‘Icon’ cleverly tacked on to the title. It sounds almost exactly like the prestigious award conferred by the Indian government to film artistes and technicians for their extraordinary contribution to the Indian film industry. Also, Dolly the Chaiwalla’s award was conferred, not by the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, which bestows the real honour, but by a fraudster called Kalyanji Jana. Brace yourself, for Jana describes himself as ‘Garibo Ke Actor’ on social media platform ‘X’.
The Dadasaheb Phalke Icon Award is not an honour – it is a paid ‘award’ given to anyone willing to shell out as little as Rs 2,000, or sometimes as much as Rs 50,000. You could be a chaiwalla with no connection to the film industry and still be eligible. Run by fraudster Kalyanji Jana’s Dadasaheb Phalke Icon Awards Film Organisation (DPIAF), the ‘award’ was given to another surprising recipient at the June 24 ceremony in Dubai. As the glitterati of the UAE applauded, Meghalaya Cabinet Minister Alexander Laloo Hek received the ‘honour’ at the Bristol Hotel in the desert city.
The Sprouts investigation has uncovered more disturbing details. Just like the DPIAF, there are many other non-governmental organisations (NGOs) registered in the name of Phalke, handing out paid awards in the name of Dadasaheb Phalke, the Father of Indian Cinema. Apart from fraudster Jana, other individuals involved in this fraudulent racket are Krishna Chouhan, Raju Tank, Akhilesh Singh, and Kishore Rajput.
The names of Phalke and his wife Saraswatibai have been appropriated by around 15 NGOs and the crooks who run these organisations. It seems they will go to any lengths to monetise their racket. Sprouts has discovered that if the recipient of the ‘honour’ cannot make it to the awards ceremony, the NGOs will courier it to your mailing address. If you pay a little more, they will even come to your doorstep and deliver it to you.
Not only is this racket unethical, it has devalued the reputation of an Indian legend and the prestigious award instituted in his name. We therefore urge the government to ban events handing out fake Phalke awards, and these so-called awards themselves.
Give Money, Get PhD
Having figured out an easy way to make a fortune, NGO selling fake Phalke awards are now offering a ‘combo deal’ – pay for a Phalke award and get a discount on a fake PhD degree. Some of them even hand out both at the same ceremony!
The Sprouts investigation has found that the fake PhD racket works in much the same way as does the fake Phalke award: on the face of it, the organisations and universities in whose names the ‘degree’ is conferred sound like legitimate entities. Only, they don’t actually exist. Sample this:
► Gandhi Peace Foundation Nepal
► World Culture and Environment Protection Commission
► Southwestern American University
► American University of Global Peace
The next bunch of ‘honorary PhDs’ will be handed out on August 11, at an event at Hotel Orchid in Mumbai. The mastermind behind this racket is fraudster Pawan Kumar Bhoot, and the ‘university’ granting the ‘degree’ is ‘American East Coast University’. Top marks for running a con operation!
Money Laundering
These fraudulent NGOs are running yet another racket – a money-laundering scam. Fraudster Kalyanji Jana and others like him register their NGOs with the Charity Commissioner by paying a small-time chartered accountant or lawyer a nominal fee of Rs 5,000 to Rs 15,000. These scamsters register their NGOs in the names of prominent personalities, and non-existent universities and social foundations with a ring of credibility.
After three years, these NGOs can issue a certificate of 80G, which gives the awardee or donor an income-tax exemption. The NGO accepts a cheque for a large sum; then they retain a fee before returning the rest of the sum to the awardee or donor. It’s a win-win. This is nothing but a ploy to launder money.
Roster of Fraudsters
Beware of these individuals selling bogus PhD degrees. Contact the police immediately if you have been scammed :
Siddic A Muhammed (Dubai), Kalyanji Jana, Riyas Sulaima Lebbe, Francisco Sardinha, Tapan Kumar Rautaray, Pawan Kumar Bhoot, Madhu Krishan, Ghanshyam Sakharam Kolambe, Peeyush Pandit, Abhishek Pandey, Mahendra Shamkant Deshpande (Nashik-Saputara-Gujarat), Lal Bahadur Rana (Nepal), Sunil Singh Pardeshi, Mangesh Deshmukh, Nareshchandra Kathole, Vishwas Arote (reporter), Surykant Rawool, Tarvinder Singh, Kiran Bongale (Sangli), Anwar Sheikh (Pune), Bu Abdullah, Lokesh Muni and Rajkumar Tak.
‘Sprouts’ appeals to the public to beware of this racket- unless fake image-building is your thing.
Also Read: The Rise and Fall of Rashid Naseem: A Tale of India’s Biggest Land Scam.
Roster of Fraudsters
Beware of these individuals selling bogus PhD degrees. Contact the police immediately if you have been scammed:
Anil Nair Thampi, Dinesh Kishor Gupta, Akepe Linus Enobi, Avinash Pawar, Joseph Legend Mfon, Musharrof Hossain, Vivek Choudhari- ESRDS, Siddic A Muhammed (Dubai), Kalyanji Jana, Riyas Sulaima Lebbe, Francisco Sardinha, Tapan Kumar Rautaray, Pawan Kumar Bhoot, Madhu Krishan, Ghanshyam Sakharam Kolambe, Peeyush Pandit, Abhishek Pandey, Mahendra Shamkant Deshpande (Nashik-Saputara-Gujarat), Lal Bahadur Rana (Nepal), Sunil Singh Pardeshi, Mangesh Deshmukh, Nareshchandra Kathole- Dr. Panjabrao Deshmukh IAS Academy, Amravati, Kishor Baliram Patil- (Bhivandi- reporter), Vishwas Arote (Akole- reporter), Surykant Rawool, Tarvinder Singh, Kiran Bongale (Sangli), Anwar Sheikh (Pune), BuAbdullah, Lokesh Muni (Ahinsa Vishwa Bharati ), Kavita Bajaj and Mansukh Damji Tank – (Rajkumar Tank), Gaurav Shah- BJP, Anajni Kumar- Delhi, Anwar Shaikh (Pune)
List of fake universities awarding bogus PhD degrees
► Gandhi Peace Foundation Nepal
► World Culture and Environment Protection Commission
► The George Washington University of Peace, United States of America
► American East Coast University
► Socrates Social Research University
► World Human Rights Protection Commission (WHPRC)
► World Peace of United Nations University
► Mount Elbert Central University
► Maryland State University
► The University of Macaria
► Theophany University
► The Open International University of Complementary Medicine, Sri Lanka
► University of America Hawaii and Inox International University
► World Mystic Science Institute (OPC) Private Limited
► University of South America
► Southwestern American University
► The American University, USA
► Zoroastrian University
► Vinayaka Missions Singhania
► American Heritage University of Southern California (AHUSC)
► Peace University
► Global Human Rights Trust (GHRT)
► Trinity World University, UK
► St Mother Teresa University
► American University of Global Peace
► Jeeva Theological Open University
► World Peace Institute of United Nations
► Global Human Peace University
► Bharat Virtual University for Peace and Education
► National Global Peace University
► Ballsbridge University
► International Open University of Humanity Health, Science and Peace, USA
► Harshal University
► International Internship University
► British National University of Queen Mary
► Jordan River University
► Boston Imperial University
► Dayspring Christian University
► South Western American University
► Global Triumph Virtual University
► Vikramshila Hindi Vidyapeeth
► Jnana Deepa University (Pune)
► Oxfaa University
► Mount Elbert Central University
► Maa Bhuvaneshwari International University
► The Institute of Entrepreneurship and Management Studies (IEMS)
► Ecole Superieure Robert de Sorbon
► Central Christian University
► Azteca University
► University of Swahili
► Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Lok Vidyapith, Amravati
► International Human Rights Ambassador International Peace Corps Association
► Indo Global University, Hyderabad
► Mount Elbert Central University
► McSTEM Eduversity, USA
► Social Awareness and Peace University
► Indian School of Management and Studies
► Socrates Social Research University
► International Global Peace University
► Ballsbridge University
► Commonwealth of Dominica
► International Anti-corruption and Human Rights Council
► Bharat Virtual University
► Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay Hindi Vidyapith
► The George Washington University of Peace
► Asia Vedic Culture Research University
► Magic Book of Record
► European Digital University (EDU)
► Hessen International University
► Chicago Open University
► Global Conclave Virtual University
► Global Cocord Virtual University
► Cambridge Digital of University
► America Internation University (AIU)
List of NGOs giving fake awards and degrees
► Dadasaheb Phalke Icon Awards Film Organisation
► Shri Dadasaheb Phalke International Award Film Foundation
► World Human Protection Commission
► Mahatma Gandhi Global Peace Foundation
► Empower Social and Education Trust
► Nelson Mandela Nobel Award Academy
► Diplomatic Mission Global Peace
Unmesh Gujarathi
Editor in Chief
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