Mumbai: A case has been registered at Shivaji Park Police Station against unidentified persons for creating a fake website and mobile app similar to Sharekhan Limited as well as WhatsApp Group. The complaint was filed by Deepak Gupta, who works in the legal department of the company. The case has been registered under Section 66(C) of the Information Technology Act and Section 319(2) of the BNS.

According to Shivaji Park Police Station's Senior Inspector Vilas Datir, an investigation is underway to check if any investors in Mumbai have been defrauded through the fake website or mobile app and WhatsApp Group.

About The Complaint

As per the complaint, in April 2024, Sharekhan started receiving emails and phone calls from investors, informing them that a duplicate website and mobile app had been created under names like www.sherkhan-max.com, SHAREKHANMAX PLUS-SHAREK-HAN, F-44-SHAREKHAN CAPITAL GROUP.

Scammers also created WhatsApp groups under similar names and misled investors, collecting money using Sharekhan’s name. The admins of one such fraudulent WhatsApp group, F-44-SHAREKHAN CAPITAL GROUP, have been identified as Adi Thakur,  Manoj Kumar Jain, Vivek Verma,  Kumar 

Additionally, multiple other fraudulent WhatsApp groups have been discovered, including G2-SHAREKHAN CAPITAL, SHAREKHAN CAPITAL VIP4, SHAREKIPO, SHAREKHAN SERVICE, VIPK6 SHAREKHAN CA, SHAREKHAN CLUBS 49527, Stock Expert Group08, Schroders Capital 164, Schroders Capital Community, Senior Stock Club Of India, Wind Vane (10A) Group.

Upon investigation, Sharekhan officials found that the fake website and app replicated the company's Logo, design, color scheme, font, office address, registration number, officer names, and contact details. The fake app was being downloaded through www.sherkhan-max.com.

Scam Reported

Sharekhan reported the scam to the Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-IN) under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). The company also warned customers and the general public through social media, advising them not to invest through these fraudulent platforms. Despite these warnings, many investors fell prey to the scam and later reported their losses via email and phone calls.

Several investors also complained to SEBI and stock exchanges about the fraud, following which SEBI directed Sharekhan to take legal action. As a result, Shivaji Park Police have registered a case against unknown persons for deceiving investors by creating a fake website, mobile app, and WhatsApp groups in the name of Sharekhan. The investigation is ongoing.