How Did Al Falah University Founder Dupe Students And Parents Of ₹415 Crore? ED Probes

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested Jawad Ahmed Siddiqui, founder and chairperson of Al Falah University, late Tuesday night, alleging he amassed over ₹415 crore by duping students and parents through fraudulent admission and fee collection schemes. Siddiqui, associated with the Faridabad-based Al Falah group, was taken into custody following extensive searches at premises linked to the educational institutions, which have been under scrutiny amid a broader money laundering investigation. The agency claims the funds were dishonestly obtained, involving misrepresentation of course offerings, infrastructure promises, and employment guarantees to lure vulnerable families.

A Delhi court on Wednesday remanded Siddiqui to 13 days of ED custody, till December 1, after the agency highlighted his flight risk due to family connections in Gulf countries. Produced before Additional Sessions Judge Sheetal Chaudhary Pradhan at her residence around 1 a.m., the hearing saw the ED seek a 14-day remand to further probe the financial trails and potential accomplices. Siddiqui's counsel vehemently contested the charges, labelling them as fabricated and politically motivated, and urging immediate bail and a thorough review of the evidence presented by the investigators.

The case has drawn additional attention due to its intersection with the probe into the devastating November 10 Red Fort area blast, which claimed 15 lives and injured dozens in a suspected terror-related incident. While the ED has not explicitly linked Siddiqui to the explosion, sources indicate that raids on Al Falah properties uncovered documents and transactions that could tie into funding networks under examination for the attack. This overlap has intensified the scrutiny on the group's operations, which span multiple campuses offering engineering, medical, and management programmes primarily to students from modest backgrounds.

Also Read: ED Conducts Multi-State Raids in ₹50 Crore Human Hair Export Case Linked to Nagaland Firms

As the investigation unfolds, the arrest underscores ongoing concerns over financial irregularities in India's private education sector, where rapid expansion has sometimes outpaced regulatory oversight. Al Falah University, established in 2014, has enrolled thousands of students annually, but complaints of unfulfilled promises have surfaced in recent years. The ED's actions could lead to asset seizures and further detentions, impacting the institution's future and prompting calls for stricter audits of similar entities to safeguard public trust and investments in higher education.

Also Read: ED Arrests Al-Falah University Founder Jawad Siddiqui in Money Laundering Probe