Daijiworld Media Network - Palamu

Palamu, Jan 5: In a startling case of impersonation, Jharkhand police have arrested a man who posed as a senior IAS officer for nearly seven years to fulfil his father’s wish and his own dream of joining the civil services.

According to police, the accused, identified as Rajesh Kumar (35), walked into the Hussainabad police station in Palamu district on January 2 and introduced himself as a 2014-batch IAS officer of the Odisha cadre, claiming to be posted as a chief accounts officer in Bhubaneswar. He told the officer-in-charge that he was on leave and sought police assistance in a land dispute involving a relative in the Hussainabad area.

Hussainabad police station officer-in-charge Sonu Kumar Chaudhary said he initially followed protocol as required while interacting with a senior civil servant. However, suspicion arose when Rajesh spoke of having been posted in Dehradun, Hyderabad and Bhubaneswar despite claiming to belong to the Odisha cadre. When questioned further, he changed his version, saying he was an IPTAFS officer, a service he claimed was equivalent to the IAS.

“This inconsistency raised serious doubts, as no serving officer would casually misstate his service details,” Chaudhary said.

After the visitor left, the matter was reported to senior officers. Verification at the sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) level confirmed that no officer matching the name, batch, cadre or service details existed. Rajesh was later traced to a nearby area and brought back to the police station along with his Hyundai Aura car bearing a Jharkhand registration number.

During sustained questioning, he admitted that he was neither an IAS officer nor a member of any allied service. Further inquiries revealed that he had been introducing himself as an IAS officer in his village and surrounding areas for several years. Police said he travelled with a blue government nameplate on his car reading “Government of India, Department of Telecommunications” and used the fake identity to exert influence at police stations and government offices.

During interrogation, Rajesh disclosed that he had gone to Delhi to prepare for the UPSC civil services examination and had appeared four times, clearing the preliminary exam once but failing to make the final list. Unable to face his father’s disappointment, he told his family that he had become an IAS officer and continued the deception for years.

A search led to the recovery of a fake identity card claiming he was a junior-grade chief accounts officer, a mobile phone, documents including a Chanakya IAS Academy ID, a library card, and the blue government nameplate from his car.

Hussainabad SDPO Mohammad Yaqub said such impersonation cases were not uncommon and often came to light when the accused failed to give consistent answers about their service or postings. He credited the alertness of the police officer for uncovering the fraud.

Rajesh Kumar has been arrested and booked under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for impersonation, use of forged documents, and misleading public servants.