Bombay High Court Denies Anticipatory Bail in GMAT Exam Scam
In a recent development, the Bombay High Court, presided over by Justice Amit Borkar, declined the anticipatory bail application of Kunal Kumar, a key accused in the 2021 GMAT examination scam that unfolded in Pune. The scam, which has garnered significant attention, involved manipulating GMAT exam scores by gaining unauthorized remote access to the computers of test-takers.
The prosecution’s case is anchored on the alleged involvement of Kumar and his accomplices, including Abhay Mishra, in a fraudulent scheme operated through a coaching center named “Dream Education.” The accused reportedly utilized the “Any Desk” app to manipulate the scores of GMAT aspirants. Furthermore, they are believed to have extorted significant sums from students who achieved high marks through this illicit method.
A pivotal piece of evidence in the case is a diary maintained by the principal accused, which seemingly indicates payments of ₹1.47 lakh and ₹2.56 lakh made to Kumar in cash. This evidence is further bolstered by WhatsApp chats between Kumar and a victim named Shantanu. Justice Borkar observed,
“prima facie, it appears that the relevant extract of diary maintained by the principal accused indicate payment… The prosecution case gets strength from the WhatsApp conversion between the applicant and witness Shantanu… Therefore, custodial interrogation of the applicant is necessary.”
The scam’s modus operandi was further detailed through an Instagram page named “GMAT_GRE_SHORTCUT.” Swapnil Vaidya, the informant, grew suspicious of the page’s legitimacy and subsequently participated in a sting operation. This operation revealed that after installing the “Any Desk” app, Kumar allegedly accessed Vaidya’s laptop during a GMAT exam, which resulted in a provisional score of 770 out of 800. Following this, a demand for ₹4 lakh was made, leading Vaidya to report the scam to the police.
While Advocate Abhijeet Shukla, representing Kumar, argued that his client was falsely implicated and had no direct links to the alleged transactions, Assistant Public Prosecutor Amit A Palkar presented evidence from the aforementioned WhatsApp chats and diary entries. The court, emphasizing the importance of full cooperation with investigations, ruled that Kumar failed to provide sufficient grounds for anticipatory bail under Section 438 of the CrPC. Consequently, the court deemed custodial interrogation essential to uncover the full extent of the scam.
The case, registered at the Cyber Cell police station in Pune, cites offenses under Sections 420 of the IPC and various sections of the Information Technology Act, 2018. With the anticipatory bail application now rejected, the case continues to unfold as the investigation delves deeper into the intricacies of this cyber fraud.
Case Details: Kumar Kunal v. State of Maharashtra – Anticipatory Bail Application No. 2183 of 2023.
