Aviation job scam in Kolkata mirrors patterns seen in Delhi

Following the unearthing of a recruitment scam at Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport in Kolkata, in which the name of GMR Group, the operator of Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport, was falsely used, an investigation was initiated after a complaint was lodged on January 24, 2026.

The case has once again drawn attention to a pattern of aviation recruitment fraud that has repeatedly surfaced in Delhi, particularly around Indira Gandhi International Airport, where placement agencies and online job portals have been used to target unsuspecting job aspirants.

The complainant in the Kolkata case, Kaushik Kanon Saha Das, alleged that he was defrauded of substantial sums after applying for a ground staff position through an online job portal. According to the First Information Report, the suspects — Debabrata Biswas, Biki Sutradhar and Souvik Karmakar — allegedly operated through an agency named Aviation Connect, based in Kaikhali.

Das was initially asked to pay an enrolment fee of Rs 4,300 through a mobile payment application. He was also persuaded to attend training classes, which investigators believe were meant to lend the operation an appearance of legitimacy.

The demands escalated when the agency sought a “security deposit” of Rs 41,300 for a post they falsely claimed was with the GMR Group, followed by a further demand of Rs 51,000 for a supposed role with Air India.

Fake interviews and forged credentials

The suspects later arranged a “final interview” inside the airport premises on the day the complaint was lodged. During the meeting, they allegedly displayed what appeared to be official Airport Authority of India identity cards to solicit more money.

However, the suspicious behaviour of the individuals during the interaction led Das to realise he had been duped. His suspicions were confirmed when he discovered that friends of his had also paid money to the same group.

Legal proceedings have been initiated under sections 316(2) and 318(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, which deal with cheating and dishonestly inducing the delivery of property.

‘I knew it was a scam’

Recounting his experience, Das said the process initially appeared genuine. “I was checking Naukri dot com for jobs where I found that Aviation Connect was actively recruiting for ground staff and ticketing across the nation,” he said.

He added that during what the recruiters described as a training period, additional payments were demanded. “They told us there was an extra payment of Rs 41,300 and Rs 51,000 for working as ground staff for GMR Group and Air India, respectively. I knew it was a scam, so I had informed the cops much earlier,” he said.

Officials from the GMR Group have declined to comment on the developments in the case.

A recurring issue at IGI Airport

While the complaint was filed in Kolkata, similar aviation recruitment scams have repeatedly surfaced in Delhi, particularly around Indira Gandhi International Airport. Such frauds often go undetected because the entities involved project themselves as placement agencies that also operate training centres.

In 2024, the Central Industrial Security Force detained an individual at IGI Airport suspected of operating a fraudulent job recruitment scheme. The suspect, identified as Pawan Bairwa, was alleged to have worked with several associates to deceive victims under the pretence of securing them employment at the airport.

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According to officials, one victim told investigators he had paid Rs 25,000 through an online transfer after being promised a job. The suspect would typically meet victims outside the airport to collect advance payments in exchange for promised positions in airport lounges, before absconding.

Police said a similar modus operandi has been observed across multiple such placement agencies.

‘Middlemen making a quick buck’

One Delhi-based applicant described his experience with a leading placement agency in Dwarka that claims to provide aviation jobs, particularly at IGI Airport. He alleged that applicants were asked to pay money upfront to secure employment.

“They are one of the leaders in the business, providing employment throughout the country’s airports,” the applicant said, requesting anonymity. “The fact is that they are essentially middlemen making a quick buck out of the necessities of applicants. They took my money and when none of the recruiters came, they disappeared and stopped answering my phone calls.”

The agency continues to advertise multiple job openings for Delhi, Noida, Guwahati and Lucknow on the same job portal.

Another agency based in West Delhi’s Ramesh Nagar has also been accused of running a similar scheme. “First they ask you to fill up a form to sit for an entrance test, where they actually select everyone,” said another applicant, also on the condition of anonymity. “Then, on the day of induction, they ask for Rs 30,000 for the placement test as security. You never get the money back. By the end of it, only two or three applicants are allowed to sit for the placement. When you are not letting anyone sit for the placements itself, it is basically a racket.”

Fake certifications and grey areas

Much like the Dwarka-based organisation, this placement agency has been functioning through online job portals meant for job seekers. The company also claims certification by the International Accreditation Forum, stating that it is ISO 9001:2000 certified. However, the organisation does not appear on the IAF database.

“These companies operate in a grey jurisdiction,” a police official said. “Technically what they are doing is wrong, but they project themselves as meeting the needs of contractors. They are middlemen. It is a scam, but people often do not pursue the legal route, even though legitimate recruitment processes are clearly listed on the IGI Airport website.”

International syndicates and money trails

Investigators have also flagged the involvement of international syndicates in job recruitment scams. In October 2025, three men — Sabbir Ahmed, Mohammad Sarfaraz and Mohammad Dilshad — were arrested for allegedly working for a cash-for-jobs scam syndicate.

Police said the accused facilitated monetary transactions by arranging bank accounts to receive defrauded funds, converting the money into cryptocurrency and transferring it to handlers in China through decentralised exchange wallets.

The arrests followed a complaint from a nurse based in Tilak Nagar, who claimed she had been swindled out of Rs 15.94 lakh in a part-time online job scam. According to a police officer, she had joined a social media group after spotting an advertisement for work-from-home opportunities and was subsequently enticed into investing money in “task-based” roles with the promise of high returns.

Investigators traced the money trail to accounts linked to the trio, leading to their arrest during raids in Uttam Nagar and Batla House. Police recovered Rs 5 lakh in cash, five mobile phones, 10 bank passbooks and 14 cheque books allegedly used to carry out the fraud.