Former vice-chancellor poses as Oman's 'high commissioner' for year; arrested
What's the story
Ghaziabad police have arrested a 66-year-old man, KS Rana, for allegedly impersonating the High Commissioner of Oman.
He was arrested on March 14 from UP Gate in Ghaziabad. Authorities also found a Mercedes car with fake diplomatic plates, an identity card, and 46 visiting cards in the operation.
Rana has been booked under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), said DCP Nimish Patil to reporters.
Profile
Background of KS Rana
Rana lived in Amar Colony in South Delhi. Earlier, he was the trade commissioner for India GCC Trade Council, a non-profit organization that works toward improving India's trade with Gulf countries.
He was later elevated to trade director of the same NGO. He also owns Krishna College of Science and Technology and a resort in Rajasthan.
Diplomatic fraud
Rana's alleged diplomatic deception
Despite his earlier tenures, Rana said in police interrogation that he was VC at four universities in Uttarakhand and Rajasthan during 2018-2024.
He also claimed he was a professor at an Agra university during 1982-2015, and served as Appraisal Authority in the Union Environment Ministry during 2015-2018.
However, police are yet to verify his claims with Almora and Mewar universities, or get a response from the Environment Ministry.
Arrest
How police caught KS Rana?
The ruse started unraveling on March 11, when the Ghaziabad Police Commissionerate and District Magistrate's office received a letter seeking "necessary protocol and security arrangements" for 'Dr (Prof) KS Rana, High Commissioner of the Sultanate of Oman (Muscat).
The VIP protocol was for a visit to his daughter's house in Vaishali on March 12.'
It seemed a standard request, till Ghaziabad Police Commissioner Ajay Kumar Mishra noticed that Oman's diplomatic representative to India is an ambassador, not high commissioner.
Protocol requests
Rana's previous requests for VIP protocols
Rana had made similar demands for VIP protocols in Mathura and Faridabad before getting arrested.
He even attended a Delhi hotel event as "high commissioner" in February.
However, when interrogated, he confessed he was neither a diplomat nor a high commissioner, but an NGO employee working as trade commissioner.
Fraudulent documents submitted by him to police authorities in Faridabad and Mathura to acquire VIP protocols were also recovered.