Bareilly: Agniveer fraud ring busted; Kesar sugar mill sale marks industrial shift

Bareilly police dismantled a gang that had been fleecing young men aspiring to join the Indian Army's Agniveer scheme by falsely promising to fix their physical and medical evaluations. Separately, a major corporate transaction involving the city's sugar industry signals continued restructuring of Bareilly's industrial base, as the UP Congress chief drew political attention to a family caught in what the party describes as government-driven harassment.

Five Arrested in Agniveer Recruitment Fraud Scheme

The Bareilly police on Thursday broke up a gang that had been allegedly defrauding aspiring Army Agniveer recruits by promising to manipulate their physical fitness and medical examination results in exchange for money. Authorities arrested five members of the gang, identified as Pradeep Kumar Sharma, Vishal Yadav, Rajveer alias Kailash, Dharmendra Singh, and a fifth co-accused. According to police officials, the gang targeted young men from Uttar Pradesh and neighbouring states desperate to clear the Agniveer selection process, which has become one of the primary short-service military recruitment routes since the Agnipath scheme's rollout. The accused allegedly collected substantial sums from recruits by claiming connections within the recruitment machinery capable of guaranteeing selection. Victims reported paying amounts ranging from tens of thousands to several lakh rupees in exchange for the false guarantees. The Agniveer scheme has attracted enormous interest across western Uttar Pradesh districts, where military service has traditionally been a valued employment pathway. Officers said a complaint from one of the defrauded aspirants led to the initial investigation, which then uncovered the wider network operating across multiple districts. The accused have been remanded in police custody pending further interrogation. Police said they are investigating whether any individuals within the recruitment chain had been approached by the gang or were aware of the fraud. [3]

🗳️ UP Congress Chief Visits Raza Family, Alleges Political Harassment

Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee president Ajay Rai visited the family of a Bareilly resident identified in reports as Raza and alleged that the cases filed against the individual were driven by political instructions from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party government rather than independent police initiative. Rai described the family's legal troubles as a textbook instance of the UP administration using the police machinery to target opposition-aligned voices and members of minority communities. He called the incidents part of a broader pattern of state-sponsored intimidation that the Congress party says has intensified in recent years across Uttar Pradesh. The visit drew significant local media attention and brought the family's situation to wider public notice. Family members shared their account of events with Rai and other senior Congress leaders who accompanied him, alleging harassment and demanding that an independent judicial inquiry be ordered. Local BJP leaders countered that the cases had been registered on merit and that the opposition was attempting to interfere with lawful legal proceedings by converting them into political controversy. The episode adds a political dimension to civic tensions in Bareilly, a city with a long history of competitive electoral politics and communal sensitivities. The Congress visit also signals the party's intent to remain active in western UP in the run-up to state assembly contests. [2]

🏢 Kesar Enterprises Approves Rs 431 Crore Slump Sale of Bareilly Sugar Unit

Kesar Enterprises, the listed sugar company, has approved a Rs 431 crore slump sale of its Bareilly sugar manufacturing unit, according to a regulatory disclosure that signals a significant shift in the ownership of one of the older industrial establishments in the city. A slump sale transfers an entire business undertaking — including all assets, liabilities, and going-concern value — as a single transaction rather than a piecemeal asset sale. The decision reflects continuing consolidation within the Uttar Pradesh sugar sector as smaller or uneconomical units change hands amid a complex operating environment shaped by high Fair and Remunerative Prices for cane, fluctuating ethanol blending targets, and shifting cane area allocation policies from the state government. Bareilly and the surrounding districts form part of western UP's traditional sugarcane belt, with the region having hosted sugar mills for well over a century. For the city, the transfer of such a major industrial unit carries implications for the local workforce employed at the facility and for sugarcane farmers who supply it. Industry observers said the transaction reflects the broader trend of listed sugar conglomerates rationalising their manufacturing footprints. The buyer's identity was not immediately confirmed in available reports. Once completed, the sale will shift operational control of the Bareilly facility, with the new owner taking on all existing obligations including farmer payment dues and labour commitments. [6]

Sources: [3] ThePrint · [2] The Times of India · [6] ChiniMandi