A serious case of online fraud has come to light in Mumbai, where cyber criminals created a fake website in the name of the ISKCON Temple’s Juhu guest house and cheated devotees. Unknown cyber fraudsters designed a counterfeit ISKCON Guest House website and duped a devotee of ₹5,000 on the pretext of online room booking. Following the incident, the ISKCON Guest House administration lodged a complaint with the Juhu police, who have initiated an investigation considering the gravity of the offence.
According to information provided by the Juhu police, Pravin Naik (42), a resident of Mira Road and working as an Assistant Manager at the ISKCON Guest House, came to know about the fraud on January 10, 2026, between 3 pm and 3.30 pm. He was informed that some unidentified persons were operating fake websites in the name of the ISKCON Guest House and collecting online bookings from devotees. The complaint stated that the fraudsters had created fake websites — https://iskonguest-house.in and https://www.iskonrooms.com — on which two mobile numbers were displayed.
A devotee, Sandeep Kumar, a resident of Rajasthan, contacted the numbers mentioned on the fake websites. The accused gained his trust through WhatsApp conversations and persuaded him to transfer ₹5,000 via PhonePe to a Bank of India account. However, after the amount was transferred, no booking confirmation was received, exposing the scam. The incident not only caused financial loss to the devotee but also dented the reputation of the ISKCON Temple.
Pravin Naik has registered a case at the police station against the holders of the mobile numbers and the unknown persons who created the fake websites. The police have registered an offence and launched a probe to trace the cyber fraud network involved. Meanwhile, the ISKCON administration has appealed to devotees to book guest house accommodation only through the official website www.iskconmumbai.com and to remain alert against suspicious links and phone numbers.