Man Poses As Slum-Dweller To Get His Son Admitted To A Posh Delhi School

In 2017, a film starring noted actor Irrfan Khan and Pakistani actress Saba Qamar hit theatres. The movie, Hindi Medium, was about a rich couple faking poverty to get their child admitted to a high-profile school in New Delhi. It now seems that the story of the film was not far from reality.

Cut to 2018, a Delhi based businessman, Gaurav Goel was arrested by Delhi Police for allegedly faking poverty to get his son admitted to one of the most prestigious educational institutions in the national capital: Sanskriti School in Chanakyapuri.

In 2013, Goel, who runs various businesses and is also the owner of an MRI centre and is the resident of Jawahar Nagar in North Delhi, faked his economic status and address — he provided a Sanjay Camp slums address, declared Rs 67,000 as his annual earnings, and provided false EWS (Economically Weaker Sections) certificates — in order to convince the authorities about his poverty, to get his elder son admitted to the same school through the EWS (Economically Weaker Section) quota. His elder son was studying in the school, without paying any fee.

His crime went unnoticed for almost five years and was only caught when Goel tried to get his second son admitted to the school in the same way. The school administration grew suspicious of Goel after they found major discrepancies, not least when Goel told them that he could shift his elder son to the general category and requested the school administration to change his address to Safdarjung Enclave, a posh colony in Delhi, because his financial condition had improved. They soon went to the police.

After an FIR was filed against the businessman, the police found out that Goel had been lying to the administration to avail the quota. DCP Madhur Verma said, “In 2013, they got EWS papers and filed (Rs) 67,000 as their annual income… But papers also showed that he had filed (Rs) 4.5 lakh income tax return. They stay in Jawahar Nagar they run a pulses business as well as an MRI centre. However, during admission, he had shown that he is an employee at the centre.”

Goel’s elder son, a student of Class 3, has been told to leave the school by the authorities.

In 2015, the crime branch of Delhi Police had busted a racket wherein EWS documents/certificates were forged for admissions in premier educational institutions in the national capital. A prime accused named Neeraj Kumar was arrested for running the racket.

According to reports, the accused charged as much as Rs three lakh to ensure admission of candidates under economically weaker section category.

In the film Hindi Medium, Irrfan and Saba play a couple from Chandni Chowk area of Delhi. They own a shop and are rich, but are not educated and so fail to get their child admitted to any top school of the city. Compelled by the situation, they leave their residence and start living in a slum, faking poverty to get their daughter admitted to a school. They even succeed in the same but later confess the truth themselves.