Consultancy founder, 10 touts held for med seat fraud

The founder of an educational consultancy in southern Bengaluru has been arrested along with 10 touts for cheating at least 10 medical and dental aspirants.

Merit Wise, having its office in Jayanagar 3rd Block, is accused of duping students from outside Karnataka who seek to study medicine and dentistry in Bengaluru's colleges. A team of the Central Crime Branch's Fraud and Misappropriation Squad arrested Rahul Singh, the founder of Merit Wise, and 10 touts near the Ambedkar college.

Singh, a native of Jharkhand, had founded the consultancy in partnership with his friends Ranjit and Sourav, the CCB said. The team hired touts to contact students and parents. Its modus operandi was this: Once the results of an entrance examination were declared, the touts would get the phone numbers of the students with low rankings and contact them or their parents. They would promise them medical and dental seats in reputable colleges for a fee.

The CCB swung into action after at least 10 students said the consultancy didn't deliver what it promised and even refused to refund the money. A senior CCB officer suspected that the consultancy cheated many more students and said it was making efforts to reach out of them. At the same time, it's trying to track down Ranjit and Sourav, the officer added.