Gandhinagar, Feb 24 (IANS) Six college students from Rajasthan have been arrested for allegedly operating a cyber fraud network that targeted pilgrims seeking accommodation at guest houses managed by the Shree Somnath Trust, officials said on Tuesday.
The action was taken by the State Cyber Centre of Excellence after multiple complaints were received from pilgrims who claimed to have booked rooms at Sagar Darshan Guest House, Maheshwari Guest House, and Lilavati Guest House in Somnath but found no record of their reservations in the Trust’s system.
The Trust permits bookings only through its official website and has not authorised any third-party platforms, including Agoda. During a technical investigation, officers identified four fake websites resembling the official Somnath booking portal.
Officials said the accused had replicated the original website’s layout, logo, and photographs of the guest houses and modified them using artificial intelligence tools to make them appear authentic.
The fake sites displayed mobile numbers operated by the accused and directed users to make advance payments through QR codes, UPI, and bank transfers. In several cases, victims were also redirected after clicking on links for online puja or donations.
According to police, the accused used paid online promotion to ensure the fake websites appeared prominently in Google search results.
They also allegedly used a location-changing application to mislead victims about the origin of calls and services.
After receiving payments, the group sent AI-generated booking receipts to complainants. Victims discovered the fraud only upon reaching the guest houses.
Technical surveillance traced the operation to a rented property in Jaipur, Rajasthan, where the six accused had allegedly been running the network for around five months.
The arrested individuals have been identified as Sachin Harsana, Abhishek Upadhyay, Rajkumar Pratap, Shersingh, Madhav Gurjar, and Vishnukum Avatar. Police said all six are college students from Rajasthan.
SP Rajdeepsinh Zala said: “A case of cyber fraud targeting pilgrims visiting the famous Somnath Temple in Gujarat has come to light. After conducting a detailed technical analysis, police arrested six accused from Jaipur, Rajasthan. The accused used advanced AI tools to create fake websites that appeared credible. They copied photographs and designs from the original site, made modifications, added fake contact numbers, and collected money directly into their accounts through QR codes.”
Zala further stated that analysis of bank accounts opened by the accused and scrutiny of digital transaction records revealed links to more than 90 cyber fraud complaints across the country.
Of these, 43 complaints were registered in Gujarat, 16 in Maharashtra, 8 in Uttar Pradesh, 5 in Rajasthan, 3 in Punjab, and 3 each in Karnataka, Haryana, and Delhi, based on complaints received through the 1930 portal and the Samanvaya portal.
Officials estimate that approximately Rs 20 lakh was defrauded through the fake websites related to the Somnath guest houses alone.
The total amount involved in frauds linked to other religious destinations is being examined.
Police said the accused had also created fake booking websites in the names of ISKCON in Vrindavan, Kashi Vishwanath, and Nathdwara.
Officials have appealed to pilgrims to make accommodation bookings only through the official website of the Shree Somnath Trust, to verify the authenticity of websites before making online payments.
–IANS
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