Dead on Paper-Alive in Reality: Punjab youth battles fraudsters in insurance scam, three booked
Ferozepur, October 2, 2025: In a case that sounds straight out of a Bollywood thriller, a 19-year-old from Nava Purba village, Ferozepur, had to fight to prove he was alive after fraudsters allegedly declared him dead and tried to swindle HDFC Life Insurance of Rs. 19 lakh—a sum that ballooned to Rs. 1.43 crore during the investigation.
On Vishal’s complaint, police registered a case at City Police Station, Ferozepur, booking three accused under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the IPC. Those named include Sukhdev Singh, Sanjana (daughter of Boota Singh, Kunde village), and Sahil Khanna.
The victim, Vishal, was shocked to learn that a fake death certificate had been issued in his name by the Chief Registrar of Births & Deaths, Punjab. To make the fraud more convincing, an ashes immersion slip from a Tarn Taran-based religious organisation and an affidavit from a woman posing as his wife were also submitted, certifying his “death. Vishal has demanded action against the accused.
Vishal said the scam began when a neighbour, Sanjana, lured him with the promise of arranging a private bank loan at attractive interest rates. Trusting her, he shared his documents and even underwent KYC verification. However, the loan never materialised. Later, when an insurance agent contacted the sarpanch of his previous village in Moga to verify an insurance claim, the shocking fraud came to light.
Investigations revealed that several insurance policies had been taken out in Vishal’s name, which comes to around Rs. 1.43 crore, with premiums duly paid. Fake documents, including a forged Aadhaar card with a tampered photograph, were allegedly used to make claims, citing heart failure as the cause of his death.
Police sources have confirmed the development and said Inspector Ayub Masih has been appointed as Investigating Officer. “Further probe is underway to identify other individuals possibly involved in this organised fraud or any other such cases, and as to how the official documents, such as death certificates, were manipulated.