A 21-year-old MBA student from Mumbai was allegedly duped of Rs 24.64 lakh by a man posing as a student counsellor. The accused threatened to blacklist and debar him over alleged exam cheating, extracting money in 71 transactions before the student realised he had been cheated.

Mumbai: The Bangur Nagar police have registered a case against an individual for allegedly defrauding a 21-year-old MBA student of Rs 24.64 lakh. The accused allegedly posed as a student counsellor and created fear in the student's mind by threatening that he would be debarred from the institution and that his academic career would be at risk. Using these threats, the accused allegedly extorted money from the student on the pretext of resolving the matter.

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According to the police, the complainant, Teerth Limani, 21, resides in Malad West. Limani enrolled for an online MBA in Finance at an institute located in Vile Parle West for Distance and Online Learning in January 2026 and paid Rs 1.12 lakh in course fees.

While making inquiries about the course, Limani came into contact with Alok Keshari, who introduced himself as an official employee and student counsellor of the institute. Keshari appeared to be familiar with the admission process, due to which Limani trusted him. Limani shared his documents with Keshari, who allegedly assisted him in completing the admission process.

As the examinations approached, Keshari called Limani and told him that he had been appointed as his official student counsellor and that he could contact him if he faced any problems related to the examinations.

In June 2026, Keshari provided Limani with bank account details and asked him to pay Rs 1,560 for the online examination. On June 14, while Limani was appearing for an online examination, he received an alert stating that cheating had been detected during the examination. Limani, who claimed that he had not cheated, contacted Keshari and informed him about the alert. On June 21, during his last examination, he received a similar alert, following which the examination application was shut down.

Keshari subsequently called Limani and asked whether he had cheated in the examination. When Limani denied cheating, Keshari allegedly began threatening him, claiming that he would be debarred from the institution and blacklisted for cheating. He allegedly further told Limani that he would not be able to secure admission to any other institution and that his academic career would be ruined.