Madikeri/ Virajpet: A fake IAS (Indian Administrative Service) officer who was threatening government officials and conned the Mysuru City Corporation (MCC) Commissioner into lending him the Government vehicle, has been arrested by the Virajpet Rural Police.

The fake IAS officer is one Soumyaranjan Mishra, 32, who hails from Odisha and is now in judicial custody.

Mishra is the son of Ramakant Mishra, a resident of B.Ramachandrapura village in Sukhi Gopal taluk of Puri district in Odisha. He came to Ammathi three days ago and stayed in a resort there. Moving around a few places in Virajpet he also visited a few government departments and introduced himself as an officer from Regional Revenue Department in Mumbai.

The local officials have believed him as they thought that since the Model Code of Conduct is in force because of the forthcoming Assembly elections, he might have been deputed from Mumbai on official duty. This smooth operator has also contacted Deputy Commissioner P.I. Sreevidya and Police Commissioner Dr. Rajendra Prasad on the mobile phone.

True colours exposed: Soumyaranjan Mishra has called Virajpet Dy.SP Nagappa, Circle Inspector Kumar Aradhya and Station Officer Basavaraju, introduced himself and demanded a gunman for himself for protection to move around the places.  

This aroused the suspicion of the Police who went to the resort where he was staying and subjected him to interrogation. Unnerved by the Police questioning, he started fumbling for answers. When he was brought to the Police Station for further questioning, the conman not only confessed to the fact that he was a fake IAS officer but also revealed his complete antecedents.

Background: Soumyaranjan Mishra, who originally hails from Odisha, was a resident of Adugodi in Bengaluru. He was working in the Central Provident Office as a software developer. A year ago, he quit the job and was staying in his sister’s house in Mumbai for a while.

On Mar.28, he came to Mysuru, called up the MCC Commissioner and requested him to lend him the Government vehicle who arranged for a vehicle. He drove to Ammathi in the government vehicle.

Virajpet Rural Police have filed cases under various sections against Mishra including cheating, misuse of vehicle and posing as IAS officer. He has been remanded to Judicial custody.  

MCC clarifies

Denying that Mishra had taken the government vehicle from MCC, a source in the Corporation told Star of Mysore that Mishra called up the MCC landline first a week ago and got in touch with Secretary to Commissioner Basavaraju and introducing himself as the Regional Commissioner from Mumbai, asked him to arrange for government vehicle and to book a room in Kabini resort on Mar.28.

MCC Commissioner G. Jagadeesha was informed about the request of the fake IAS officer.  But Jagadeesha has told his Secretary that a government vehicle cannot be arranged and if the officer wanted it, he had to make a request directly with the Deputy Commissioner. However, the fake officer was promised that a private taxi could be arranged by the MCC vehicle section Assistant Najimulla.

Mishra arrived in Mysuru on Mar.28 and took the private vehicle, drove to the Police Commissioner’s Office to freshen up and asked for a gunman and then drove with him to Ammathi, according to sources in the Police Department.

Meanwhile, the driver of the cab has asked Mishra to pay for the cab and when he did not make the payment, the cab driver is said to have returned to Mysuru from Ammathi, said the source in MCC.