Three Indians held in Nepal for false quake help

Nepal Police on Tuesday arrested three Indian nationals allegedly involved in defrauding the public with fake promises of help to earthquake survivors from Rautahat district of southern Nepal.

The fraudsters, posing as representatives of the Indian government, have been identified as Sujit Kumar, Sudip Kumar Kushwaha and Ranjit Kumar Kushwaha from Champaran district of India's Bihar state. Police have filed fraud charges against them.

They were collecting nominal fees to fill out a form saying that the Indian government would provide up to Nepali Rs.200,000 (nearly $2,000) for the survivors of the earthquakes that rocked Nepal on April 25 and May 12, said Inspector Santu Prasad Jaiswar of the Garuda Police Station.

Acting on a tip-off, a Nepal Police team arrested the trio from Fatuwa Harsaha VDC-6. They were caught while collecting Nepali Rs.100 to Rs.300 for filling up the forms, police said.

"We filled up the forms trusting them that the Indian government would provide Rs.100,000-200,000 to the earthquake victims," said a local, Suraj Kumar Sah, adding: "Later, it was discovered that they were frauds."

The three Indians had presented themselves as representatives of the Indian government, people said.

Police have confiscated forms, laptops, rubber stamps, mobile phones, cards of Income Tax Department of India, Mastercard and Visa cards of various Indian banks and a motorcycle from them.

(Anil Giri can be contacted at girianil@gmail.com)