A journalist was arrested by the Delhi Police’s Intelligence Fusion and Strategic Operations Unit (IFSO) for allegedly creating a fake e-mail ID in the name of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and asking public sector companies (PSUs) to provide advertisements for newspapers, officers said on Sunday.
According to DCP (IFSO) K.P.S. Malhotra, the accused was identified as Manoj Kumar Seth, 41, a resident of Bhubaneswar. Police received a complaint from the personal secretary of Mr. Adityanath wherein he alleged that some unknown person had created a fake e-mail ID purportedly shown to be that of the Chief Minister.
“Further, the alleged person had sent emails and forged letters to PSUs including Power Grid Corporation of India, ONGC and GAIL India,” Mr. Malhotra said. He added that the accused had also attached scanned letters, wherein he had forged the signatures of Mr. Adityanath.
Thereafter, an FIR was lodged and a team led by ACP Raman Lamba was constituted to investigate the case. During the probe, the fake email ID was identified and its contents analysed to understand the motive of the emails following which it was revealed that it was with the request to release advertisements in favour of an English newspaper ‘Breaking News’.
“Similarly, fake emails and letters were sent to ONGC and GAIL for the advertisement in favour of one ‘TOP News’. After digital tracking through the IP address, the accused was identified but he kept changing location. Seth was eventually arrested from Bhubaneswar.
Police said that Seth was a freelance journalist who also published a fortnightly newspaper ‘Samaj Aina’ and had created the fake email and prepared the forged letters to seek advertisement support in favour of local newspapers.
