Gujarat Police have uncovered an alleged online pilgrimage booking fraud in which 21,985 people across the country were targeted through deceptive websites posing as official accommodation booking platforms for prominent religious destinations.
How the Scam Was Set Up
The Cyber Centre of Excellence under Gujarat Police arrested two men in connection with the case, identified as Vicky Kumar Gupta, 34, a resident of West Sagarpur in Delhi, and Shailesh Saini, 24, a resident of Bharatpur in Rajasthan. According to investigators, the accused allegedly created more than 126 deceptive websites, using the names, photographs, and replicated designs of genuine websites belonging to well-known dharamshalas, ashrams, trusts, and hotels.
Targeting Travellers Across Major Pilgrimage Sites
According to the investigation, these websites were specifically designed to appear connected with accommodation providers at popular pilgrimage destinations, including Somnath, Dwarka, Tirupati, Rishikesh, and Haridwar. The accused allegedly presented themselves as authorised representatives of these establishments and collected advance payments online from travellers hoping to reserve rooms. The accommodation promised in return, however, was allegedly never actually provided.
What made these sites particularly effective, according to police, was how convincingly they replicated genuine establishments — copied names, images, and visual elements made them appear entirely credible to people searching online for lodging near major pilgrimage centres. The network allowed the accused to reach travellers across several parts of the country, rather than operating in just one location, significantly widening the scale of the alleged fraud.
A Nationwide Investigation Triggered by Over 70 Complaints
The investigation kicked off after more than 70 complaints were received through the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal. Using a combination of technical analysis and human intelligence, investigators eventually identified the two accused and apprehended them from Delhi and Rajasthan.
The scale of what investigators uncovered is genuinely striking — 21,985 people across India had allegedly been affected by this fraudulent website network, with around 7,000 of those affected coming from Gujarat alone. These numbers highlight just how widely these deceptive booking pages had spread, successfully drawing in people specifically searching for accommodation linked to religious travel.
Six Administrative Panels Controlling the Network
Police also found that the accused allegedly had access to six administrative panels used to manage the fraudulent websites. These panels reportedly allowed them to change contact numbers and edit website content on the fly, giving the operators the ability to alter information displayed to visitors whenever needed — a level of control that made the fake sites even harder to distinguish from legitimate ones.
The use of multiple websites alongside these administrative panels formed a key part of the infrastructure investigators examined while tracing the full extent of the network. Both accused have now been arrested in connection with the case, while further investigation and legal proceedings continue. The inquiry remains ongoing, both into the broader network of fraudulent pilgrimage booking websites and into identifying the full scope of people affected by it.
FAQs
Q1. How many people were affected by this fake pilgrimage booking network?
Investigators found that 21,985 people across India were allegedly affected by the fraudulent website network, with around 7,000 of those from Gujarat alone.
Q2. Which pilgrimage destinations did the fake websites target?
The deceptive websites were designed to appear connected with accommodation providers at Somnath, Dwarka, Tirupati, Rishikesh, and Haridwar.
Q3. How did police identify and arrest the accused?
The investigation began after more than 70 complaints were filed through the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal, leading investigators to identify and arrest the two accused from Delhi and Rajasthan using technical analysis and human intelligence.