Bengaluru, 27 July (H.S.):A fraudulent job racket promising appointments as Panchayat Development Officers (PDOs) in Karnataka's Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Department has come under police investigation after a senior executive of a private pharmaceutical company allegedly lost ₹26 lakh to a group of fraudsters.
According to a complaint lodged with the Vidhana Soudha Police Station, the victim, a senior manager employed at a pharmaceutical company in Whitefield, was allegedly deceived with assurances that he could secure a government job through influential political and bureaucratic contacts.
Police said the prime accused, identified as Santosh Hosamani, first approached the complainant in December 2024. During their interactions, Hosamani allegedly claimed to be an employee of the Department of Personnel and Administrative Reforms (DPAR) and asserted that he had close connections with officials in the Karnataka Public Service Commission (KPSC). Using these claims to gain the victim's confidence, he allegedly demanded ₹50 lakh to arrange a PDO appointment.
Investigators said the complainant eventually paid ₹26 lakh in several instalments after being repeatedly assured that the recruitment process was progressing. When the promised appointment order failed to arrive, the victim questioned the accused.
To reinforce the deception, another individual identifying himself as Rao allegedly contacted the complainant multiple times from a landline number purportedly linked to the KPSC office. The caller reportedly assured the victim that the PDO appointment had been finalised and that the appointment order would be issued shortly.
However, months passed without any official communication or appointment order. The complainant later alleged that Hosamani stopped responding to his phone calls, prompting him to suspect that he had been cheated.
Based on the complaint, the Vidhana Soudha police have registered a case against Santosh Hosamani, Rao, Mahesh Kumar and Basavaraj. Police have summoned the accused for questioning and have launched an investigation to trace the money trail and determine whether more people were targeted by the alleged recruitment scam.
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Hindusthan Samachar / Arun Lakshman
