KOCHI: More than 50 students from Kerala are facing a bleak future after the Switzerland government banned their entry to any Schengen country for three years for submitting forged admission letters of a Swiss school during visa application. The letters were allegedly provided to them by a Kochi-based foreign language training centre. The students’ entry is banned till October 21, 2024.
The police said a case has been registered against the training institute ‘Farbe School of Foreign Languages’ in Kaloor for collecting lakhs of rupees from students after promising them admission at Benedict School in Bern along with an internship of Rs 2-lakh monthly stipend. The institute made the students attend the visa application process interview at the Switzerland Embassy in New Delhi allegedly after providing them fake admission letter. Meanwhile, the institute’s managing director has refuted the charges.
The students came to know about the fraud only when they received a letter from the Switzerland government on October 22 last year, stating that the admission letter of Benedict School, Bern, which they provided for visa application was forged. Though a case was registered at the Ernakulam North police station on December 16, 2021, based on a complaint by a student, police have reportedly not taken any action against the owner of the institute.
The police had filed a report before a court on February 1, saying “there is no need to arrest the accused for the time being”. Police sources said the report was filed by the investigation officer before additional sessions court here when an anticipatory bail application of the managing director of the institute, identified as Gireesh, came up for hearing.“In fact, the institute attempted to hush up the matter by returning the money to the students after the fraud came to light,” said a senior police officer.
TNIE spoke to a complainant and found that the language institute, which provided them training in German language, had allegedly recommended the students to opt for Switzerland as they have a tie-up with a Hyderabad-based firm that was into conducting emigration to Switzerland.
“It was after we successfully completed the A1 level exam in German language that the managing director came up with an offer that he could help us get an admission in a school in Switzerland that also offers monthly stipend. Though he demanded Rs 5 lakh from each applicant, it was later reduced to Rs 3 lakh as a special offer and collected Rs 2 lakh as advance payment,” said the complainant.
When contacted, Gireesh E told TNIE that he had nothing to do with the admission letters given to the students as it was done by a Hyderabad-based global education firm with which he has a tie-up. “I have not issued any admission letter to the students. Also, there are only 13 students affected by the goof-up and not 50 as alleged.
“I have taken the matter with the Hyderabad agency and they have initiated the process requesting the Switzerland Embassy to lift the ban. The students are expected to get a letter from the Swiss government lifting their ban in the next 20 to 22 days,” Gireesh said.