SAMAJ WEEKLY UK
Vidya Bhushan Rawat
In 2019, the world learned of the so-called “United States of Kailasa,” a self-proclaimed nation founded by Swami Nityananda, a fugitive wanted in India for serious crimes, including rape and murder. Astonishingly, representatives of this fictitious country even participated in United Nations meetings, such as the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) in Geneva. The audacity of this scam raised eyebrows globally, yet it was only the tip of the iceberg.
Fast forward to 2025, and another bizarre tale has emerged from Ghaziabad, a city adjacent to India’s national capital. Harshvardhan Jain, a self-styled “ambassador” of non-existent countries like West Arctica, Saborga, Poulvia, and Lodonia, was arrested by the Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF). For seven years, Jain operated a lavish “embassy” campus, complete with Audis and Mercedes, defrauding people under the guise of diplomatic authority. That such a fraud could flourish undetected in the heart of a bustling city speaks volumes about the cracks in India’s administrative and societal framework.
A Society Susceptible to Deception
Why do such scams persist in India? The answer lies in historical and psychological barriers that shape public perception. For centuries, society has stereotyped thieves and fraudsters as “poor,” “black,” or “disabled.” When a petty thief is caught stealing bread, public outrage often leads to mob violence, sometimes even death. Yet, when high-profile individuals—those who siphon billions, destabilize banks, or undermine public institutions—are exposed, they are often shielded by their status. These “honourable” thieves live luxuriously, evading justice with impunity. For instance, a nationalized bank recently labelled a prominent industrialist as a fraud, yet he remains beyond the reach of investigative agencies.
Harshvardhan Jain understood this societal double standard. He capitalized on India’s fascination with grandeur and authority, crafting an elaborate facade that went unquestioned. In a country where street gossip masquerades as knowledge, intellectual discourse is stifled by casteist and capitalist agendas, and academics surrender to social pressures, figures like Jain and Nityananda become perverse role models. A society that marginalizes rationalists and humanists while elevating charlatans is ripe for exploitation.
The Mechanics of a Modern Myth
Reports suggest Jain ran a hawala racket, leveraging his fabricated diplomatic status to launder money. His connections to Chandraswami, a notorious figure with political ties across party lines, hint at a broader network of influence. Jain’s family, once in the marble business in Rajasthan, faced financial ruin after his association with Chandraswami. After a stint in London, Jain returned to India with a newfound “vision”—creating countries that existed only in his imagination. According to the Hindustan Times, he holds an MBA from the London College of Applied Science, a detail that, if true, might amuse the institution’s faculty, given their alumnus’s “creative” application of business acumen.
Jain’s arrest is not his first brush with the law, yet his confidence in evading consequences points to a troubling reality: connections often trump accountability in India. The system only catches up when those connections falter. This pattern is evident in the broader landscape of economic fraud, where tax defaulters and corporate scamsters thrive in the shadows of liberalization.
The Call for a Caste Census
A caste census, often demanded for social justice, could also expose the concentration of wealth and power among a select few. Who owns India’s resources? Who perpetrates the nation’s biggest frauds? These questions, if answered honestly, could dismantle the myths that protect the elite while exposing systemic inequities. The post-liberalization era has seen the rise of mega-scams, yet the perpetrators often escape scrutiny, shielded by their social and economic clout.
A Culture of Blind Faith
The proliferation of scams is not just a legal or administrative failure; it is a cultural one. India’s education system, once a beacon of secular and scientific values, has been eroded by dogma and faith-based narratives. This has given rise to a generation of “bhakts”—blind followers who question dissenters but never their leaders. A telling example is a comedic scene from a Hindi film where a fraudulent travel agency promises a trip to Dubai but strands customers on Mumbai’s Mud Island (https://youtu.be/P5xr-anT7VQ?si=JcZplCKScl5b3ZLb). This satire mirrors reality: fraudsters exploit dreams in a jobless economy, preying on a populace desperate for hope.
Reimagining India’s Future
India’s imagination is its greatest asset, but it must be channelled toward progress, not deception. Unlike Columbus or Vasco da Gama, who explored real lands (albeit with questionable motives), India has produced visionaries who conjure entire nations from thin air. While this creativity is remarkable, it underscores a deeper malaise: a system that fails to foster scientific temper, humanism, and accountability.
To move forward, India must rebuild its institutions, revive its education system, and cultivate a culture of questioning. Only then can the nation harness its imagination for genuine innovation, rather than falling prey to the next Harshvardhan Jain or Swami Nityananda. Until that day, we celebrate our ingenuity with a wry smile, wondering what fantastical scam awaits us next.
