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Mother of all UK visa scams brings Indians under scanner

The tremors of Britain’s biggest visa scam are being felt in India. Hundreds of Indian nationals in the UK are being searched by immigration authorities.

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The tremors of Britain’s biggest visa scam are being felt in India. Hundreds of Indian nationals in the UK are being searched by immigration authorities for visas procured using forged documents via jailed consultant Jatinder Kumar Sharma and associates.

Sharma, a qualified solicitor, and his wives Neelam Sharma and Rakhi Shahi ran the fraud firm Univisas, which helped hundreds procure visas using bogus documents and false identification certificates of UK and other overseas universities. An investigation found over 900 people, “three quarters of them from India”,  benefited from the scam. Around 150 beneficiaries are allegedly from Pakistan. “Univisas had clients from over 20 countries, including the Indian sub-continent,” a British high commission spokesperson here told DNA.

He said, “The investigation to locate beneficiaries of this scam continues. Around 50 people have been removed, while enforcement action is under way in another 50 cases. Around 200 passports have been seized and are being reviewed following the conviction of Sharma and associates.”

British authorities are in touch with the Indian government. A British high commission spokesperson, asked whether there had been more arrests, said, “A number of options remain open to the UK authorities. These are now being considered in light of the Univisas convictions.”

Univisas offices were raided last year following a sting by a British newspaper that unearthed a massive visa scam, probably the biggest in the UK in recent times. Police recovered 90,000 documents, including over 980 visa forms, counterfeit ink stamps, pay slips and other fake documents, from Univisas’ Southhall office.

The convicts reportedly amassed around £1.5million (Rs11.7 crore), part of which has been recovered by the British authorities.

Earlier this month, Sharma and wives were found guilty by the Isleworth Crown court of money laundering, using false documents, etc. Sharma, 44, was jailed for seven years for offences that include conspiracy, money laundering and deception. Rakhi, 31, was given eight years for conspiracy, money laundering and using false documents. Neelam, 38, was given four years for money laundering but was cleared of conspiracy to defraud the immigration office.

A British high commission official said several scam beneficiaries “have already been served administrative removal papers by the home office, and enforcement teams continue to target those who are in the UK illegally”.

“Some of those who entered UK through Univisas were legitimate, essentially victims of Sharma’s criminal enterprise,” a UK high commission spokesperson said.

The scam beneficiaries are likely to be deported back to India and face a 10-year ban.
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