Ahmedabad: The Ahmedabad Cyber Crime Branch has arrested a man from Bikaner in Rajasthan and registered cases against two others for allegedly operating an extortion racket through Instagram, officials said.

The accused, identified as Rajnish Bhargava, was taken into custody after a woman filed a complaint stating that she had been deceived and forced to transfer Rs 1,43,951 through multiple transactions.

Police added that two other suspects, Vikas Bhargava and Ravi Bhargava, are currently absconding.

Fake identities used to gain trust

According to investigators, the group managed several Instagram accounts, including one named “astrologer_pooja_kinnar_maa”. Through these accounts, they posed as an astrologer known as “Pooja Kinnar Guru Ma”.

Officials said this identity was intentionally created to hide the operator’s real gender while gaining the confidence of people seeking help for personal and marital concerns.

A Cyber Crime Branch officer said, “The accused projected himself as an astrologer ‘Pooja Kinnar Guru Ma’ on Instagram and used this identity to defraud and blackmail victims under the pretext of performing rituals to make people fall in love, get married, settle divorce issues or solve relationship problems.”

Targeting women through social media

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Cyber Crime) Lavina Sinha stated that the accused mainly targeted women using advertisements and direct messages on Instagram and Facebook. They offered solutions to relationship issues through rituals and practices described as “vashikaran”.

She explained, “The accused collected personal information of the victims and, by maintaining continuous contact using multiple mobile numbers, obtained photos from them under the pretext of performing rituals.”

Alleged blackmail and coercion tactics

Sinha further outlined how the accused allegedly manipulated victims. “The accused then edited these photographs and threatened to make them viral, forcing victims to undress during video calls for ‘shudhikaran vidhi’, which were screen-recorded to obtain nude videos of the victims,” she said.

She added that the material was later sent back to the victims in “one view” format and used to demand money, with threats of public circulation if payments were not made.

Large-scale operation revealed

Police said the accused were in touch with nearly 300 women daily via social media and handled between 60 and 65 clients each day for different rituals. Charges ranged from Rs 3,000 to Rs 15,000 depending on the service offered.

In the case that led to the arrest, investigators confirmed that Rs 1,43,951 had been extracted from the complainant through repeated transactions.

Officials stated that digital and financial analysis suggested the network had been active for about two-and-a-half years and generated an estimated Rs 40 lakh to Rs 50 lakh during that period.

Financial trail and legal action

Investigators identified several bank accounts linked to the operation, including those in Axis Bank, Bank of Baroda and State Bank of India. Transactions amounting to approximately Rs 60 lakh were traced, with some linked to other cyber fraud cases reported across multiple states.

An FIR has been registered at the Cyber Crime Police Station under Sections 75(2), 77, 78(2), 308(2), 318(4), 351(2) and 61(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, along with Sections 66(D) and 67 of the Information Technology Act.

Officials said that a combination of technical analysis and human intelligence helped identify the Instagram accounts, mobile numbers and financial channels used in the alleged scam. This led to the arrest of the main accused in Bikaner within a week of the complaint.

Further investigation is ongoing to locate the absconding suspects and to identify more victims who may have been affected by the network.

Agency inputs