The anatomy of a fraudster!

Zest for earning a fast buck leads channel people towards
committing frauds within the very community they deal in. Whether it the recent
Sanjay Gupta's Gravis Computer case or Chandigarh's Jordan Loyal, zest
towards earning more money by any means seems to be taking its toll on these
fraudsters.

When we talk about fraudulent operatives in the channel
community, whether it is New Delhi, Chandigarh, Lucknow or Jaipur, the story
remains same, only the script and the main characters differ. And most often
than not, it is the desire of the person to earn more and more money that lands
him into trouble.

According to a leading New Delhi-based psychiatrist, Dr
Naresh Bhuttan, most people engaged in these bogus operations seem to find
themselves in situations that they cannot handle so easily and as a result go
after just one objective, that is to have money.

“Mostly
in such cases people do not care how they go about building the road that will
lead them towards their goal of earning money. In most instances these people
are confused and not very clear about what is right or wrong. This is a big
difference between a person who has a tendency for committing frauds and a
common man who is leading a normal life,” he explained.

People from the channel industry confirm that it is this
doubtful psychic behavior that contributes towards making a fraudster out of a
common channel player. “Whether it is Sanjay Gupta or someone else. We know
them quite well; they have our trust. Certain circumstances clubbed with their
inherent behavior pushes them towards committing frauds,” informs a prominent
channel partner from New Delhi on condition of anonymity.

It is interesting to note that there are other fraudulent
channel players in the community who are still operating. Then there are some
like Jordan Loyal who have managed to disappear, leaving behind a set of worried
distributors and resellers. 

It may be recalled that in the month of August 2003, a
prominent reseller of Chandigarh, Jordan Loyal, proprietor of Fairbrother
Marketing, went absconding after leaving outstanding dues of over Rs 1.25 crore.
While a case was registered with the local police, he is still absconding and is
believed to be living somewhere in the Europe.

Pressure from distis

Experts close to the industry believe that there is fair bit of pressure
from various distributors to push their products and sometimes this propels
people towards making sure that they sell more.

Setting right credit limits from time to time for different
people is one way of safeguarding one's interest. With more sectors and
regional geographies opening up, the IT industry within India has evolved over
the years. The success and future growth will depend on the ability to handle
such critical issues more effectively.

Zia Askari New
Delhi, April 20