Two Arrested for Selling Fake Garba Passes in Ahmedabad Using
Two individuals were arrested in Ahmedabad for selling fake Garba passes worth ₹8 lakh using and Instagram ads.
Ahmedabad, October 19 (Daily Kiran) : In Ahmedabad, two individuals have been arrested for allegedly selling 686 counterfeit Garba passes, defrauding customers of approximately ₹8 lakh. The city’s Cyber Crime Branch reported the arrests on Monday, revealing that the main suspect utilized to create convincing fake passes and promoted them through paid advertisements on Instagram.
The primary accused, 21-year-old Virendra Singh Rathod, reportedly managed an Instagram account under a user ID. His accomplice, 22-year-old Kishan Singh Rathod, was apprehended in Rajasthan’s Sikar district following a technical investigation. Both men are originally from Rajasthan and have prior experience working at various events.
According to Dr. Lavina Sinha, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Cyber Crime), the suspects advertised discounted tickets for major Garba events in Ahmedabad via Instagram. They allegedly used Meta’s paid advertising service to target specific audiences, significantly increasing their reach among potential buyers interested in purchasing passes during the Navratri festival.
Virendra Singh Rathod created an Instagram profile under the name Veer Rajput. He employed and artificial intelligence to gather information and images from official websites and social media pages of Garba organizers, which he then used to fabricate the fake passes.
The accused reportedly created counterfeit email addresses resembling those of event organizers and sent the fake passes to customers via email. They also contacted clients through WhatsApp to gain their trust. The counterfeit passes included booking IDs, reference numbers, and QR codes, which were designed to be verified at the event venue, often revealing their invalidity only upon customer arrival.
Police noted that posts from the Instagram account reached nearly 40,000 users in Ahmedabad. The suspects sold the tickets at significantly reduced prices, promoting passes for Anant Experience at around ₹1,500, despite a listed price of ₹5,000, and selling Mandapam passes for ₹500-600.
