TechPana FactCheck: Jhankri Prakash Bhujel's Dr. title is fake, the organization that gives the honor is illegal

Kathmandu: Prakash Bhujel, who claims to be a Jhankri, has been in the news on social media platforms Facebook, TikTok, and X since Monday. He has become a troll after putting the title Dr. in front of his name on Facebook. Many are surprised that a Dhami-Jhankri, who is generally considered against the medical profession, got the title “Doctor.”

Bhujel has claimed that he put “Doctor” in front of his name because he was honored by the Institute of Entrepreneurship and Management Studies (IEMS). However, TechPana’s fact-check shows that this institution is not a university and has no affiliation with any recognized university. It has been confirmed that the institution grants or possibly sells such honors, and Bhujel has used “Doctor” based on that award.

Claim

On 11 August 2025, at 1:20 pm, Prakash Bhujel went live on his Facebook account (archive link) showing him receiving the award. At 9:16 pm, he posted a photo of the certificate (archive link). He wrote in the caption: “Today is the most precious day of my life, you know why. I will have to be so responsible that every activity of mine in the coming days will be such that it will win more hearts and souls of you guys…” (Translated)

On Tuesday, a screenshot of his Facebook account showing the verified mark and “Dr.” written in front of his name went viral. A blue checkmark is available on Facebook, X, and other platforms only after paying a fee. In this way, Prakash Bhujel, who claims to be a Jhankri, added the title, and some Facebook pages made it news. Most of the publicity came from the page Nepal Tantrik Jhankri Sangh, which is run by Bhujel himself. This page was previously named “Prakash Bhujel.” Bhujel’s popularity grew further after the page began posting promotional videos.

In a video uploaded on the Facebook page Zoom TV on 12 August 2025, Bhujel was asked why he put “Dr.” in front of his name. He said: “…What I'm saying is, do some research. This is the age of Google. This is what science says. But your friends are talking indiscriminately. They don't get it. They are 'jealous' about the work I've done.” (Translated)

He further said: “I am a Tantric doctor. You should Google it once. I won't tell you everything about this subject now. The main thing is that there is an award. There is an award more than being a doctor…” (Translated)

He claimed he received the award because he had “studied Tantric subjects.” He has repeated this point in subsequent videos.

Research

Prakash Bhujel has openly mentioned that he received this honor from the Institute of Entrepreneurship and Management Studies (IEMS) in Morang. First, let us analyze the certificate he made public on Facebook.

The ISO certification number is mentioned at the top right of the certificate. However, ISO does not award academic degrees, so it has no relevance here. 

The certificate states the institution as “Autonomous Virtual Mode University.” No other institution with such a tagline or affiliation exists worldwide. 

The spelling of Bhujel’s name is incorrect on the certificate; it reads “Prakesh” instead of “Prakash.” An organization awarding an honorary doctorate should at least spell the recipient’s name correctly. ISO certification does not authorize an organization to award degrees. The certificate’s style, wording, and formatting raise doubts about its validity.

Two domains are associated with this organization: iems.world and iems.institute. The first cannot be opened due to bandwidth limits. The second is incomplete; its homepage and pages like “About Us” and “Contact Us” do not load properly. 

On Instagram, this organization claims to be India’s largest “online campus organization.” 

The institution has tried to present itself as a virtual university, with a location in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, India. However, no buildings exist at this location. Even if we consider this a minor error, it raises questions about the physical presence of the company. Photos of IEMS on Google Maps show only events, and no office photos exist on the website or social media.

A channel called Samachar News on YouTube made a video about this institution, but the channel itself does not appear to be official. The visuals and audio quality raise doubts about its credibility. No other Indian media outlets were found reporting on this institution. However, videos on its YouTube channel confirm that the institution conducts such award programs. One reviewer on Google warned that the university is fake, describing how an initial free offer for a degree turned into a demand for 60,000 INR. When contacted on WhatsApp, a representative said: “We provide free awards/professional degrees. You should send your resume, background, etc.”

In India, honorary doctorates are awarded only by universities recognized by the University Grants Commission (UGC). According to the UGC Act 1956, institutions affiliated with Central Universities, State Universities, Deemed Universities, and Open Universities can award honorary doctorates. IEMS has no such recognition. Many private organizations in India, however, award doctorates without UGC affiliation, and the UGC regularly issues warnings against them.

In 2019, the Karnataka High Court ordered the UGC and other authorities to investigate scams involving honorary degrees by private institutions, highlighting similar cases to IEMS. The writ, registered as a PIL, raised concerns over the growing trend of private training institutions and universities awarding honorary doctorate degrees to individuals with criminal backgrounds.

It also mentioned that two private institutions, the National Virtual University for Peace and Education and the Indian Virtual Academy for Peace and Education, claimed to be registered with NITI Aayog but were awarding such degrees without any real capacity. It was found that although these institutions were recognized for general skill development training, they were not authorized to award honorary doctorates. At first glance, IEMS also appears to fall into this category.

IEMS has not mentioned anywhere that it is affiliated with any educational institution in India. Instead, it has stated that it is accredited by the “American Council of Training and Development” (ACTD). However, the ACTD website itself notes that IEMS’s accreditation validity has expired.

Even if this is taken as a technical error, there is enough reason to doubt ACTD itself. The organization has claimed that its office is in Hawthorne, USA. Its location is also marked on Google Maps. However, Google Street View shows no building or signage confirming the physical presence of this office. The style and presentation of ACTD closely resemble that of IEMS.

The “About” section of ACTD’s website states: “ACTD is an independent board established in the United States of America that issued a license certificate from the Secretary of State of New Jersey.”

The English sentence itself is unclear. It is not obvious who issued the license to whom. If ACTD had received its certificate from the Secretary of State of New Jersey, it would simply have written, “ACTD is an independent board established in the United States of America, licensed by the Secretary of State of New Jersey.” Instead, the statement is complicated and ambiguous, making its actual meaning unclear.

New Jersey is one of the 50 states in the United States of America, known officially as the State of New Jersey. The organization claims it received a license issued by the Secretary of State. However, there is no record of the Secretary of State granting any such license to a council for issuing accreditation.

A search for the name “ACTD” on the State of New Jersey’s official website returned no results. Even an advanced Google keyword search did not reveal any link between ACTD and the State of New Jersey. ACTD’s website only mentions “State of New Jersey” without clarifying what kind of license it received or in which field it is authorized to operate.

In the concluding paragraph, the website states: “It provides training development, training programs, supervision of courses and professional programs, accreditation and evaluation service for training institutions and trainers worldwide, and we have an advanced global network with regional offices spread all over the world.”

The sentence begins in the third person, “It provides…” but then shifts to the first person, “…we have an advanced global network.” This inconsistency in pronouns indicates a grammatical error and lack of professionalism.

ACTD’s website also features a photo that appears to show a professor teaching a student. A Google reverse image search revealed that the photo was copied from King’s College London in the UK. There is no direct or indirect relationship between King’s College and ACTD.

The institution further claims to have granted affiliations to educational institutions in 48 countries. In the United States, however, only the U.S. Department of Education (USDE) and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) are authorized to grant approval to accrediting agencies.

Additionally, the Project Management Institute (PMI) accredits project management certification programs, the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) accredits HR training, and the American Nursing Credentialing Center (ANCC) accredits nursing education. ACTD was not found to be accredited by any of these bodies.

There is also very little reporting on ACTD. Nigerian media outlets such as Tech Cabal and This Day Live have written that a local institution, Axia Africa, was fully accredited by ACTD. Apart from these references, no other news coverage mentioning ACTD by name was found.

ACTD, which claims to accredit organizations worldwide, has only 64 subscribers on YouTube and 17 videos, all generated by AI. Its Facebook page has 1,700 followers. With such a low online presence, no reviews have been found from organizations or individuals who have used its services.

Its LinkedIn profile also exists, where it claims to have 11–50 employees. However, only two ‘employees’ are linked to it on LinkedIn. One of them has listed himself as a “Board Member Aesthetic Medicine Practitioner,” working part-time since November 2025, while the other profile is not visible.

Based on these facts, it appears that this organization has no physical presence and has not received recognition to provide accreditation.

Now, returning to IEMS, which awarded the honorary doctorate to Bhujel, the institution has introduced itself as a training organization. But there is no indication that it has received valid recognition for medical practice, medical degrees, or any related activities.

To confer an honorary doctorate, the institution must be recognized or approved by a government-authorized body in its own country or abroad. IEMS has claimed recognition in India as a training institution and affiliation with the American organization ‘ACTD.’ As already established, the credibility of ACTD itself is highly questionable. Based on all these grounds, the honorary doctorate awarded to Prakash Bhujel appears to be fake.

Claim

• Jhankri Prakash Bhujel has used the title “Dr.” in front of his name, claiming he received a doctorate.

• He claims he received this honor from the Institute of Entrepreneurship and Management Studies (IEMS).

• He states he is a “Tantrik Doctor” and received the title for studying Tantric subjects.

• He claims IEMS awards honorary doctorates to various individuals.

Claimant

Prakash Bhujel, who prefers to call himself Jhankri

Fact

The awarding body IEMS is dubious. The degrees it awards have no official recognition. The institution is not accredited by the University Grants Commission (UGC) of India or any approved educational institution, which is mandatory for such degrees. Its websites (iems.world, iems.institute) are either closed or incomplete. The location of IEMS on Google Maps shows no physical office or building. Although IEMS claims accreditation from the American organization ACTD, ACTD’s accreditation has expired. ACTD itself is dubious, not recognized by USDE or CHEA, and lacks confirmed physical presence. Using “Dr.” in front of one’s name based on such an honor is misleading and morally wrong.

Conclusion

Facts confirmed by TechPana show that the “Dr.” title used by Jhankri Prakash Bhujel is fake. The awarding institution, Institute of Entrepreneurship and Management Studies (IEMS), is suspicious and has no recognition from any official academic or government body to award honorary doctorates. The American organization ACTD, which supposedly affiliated IEMS, is also dubious and lacks official recognition. Based on these facts, both the honor received by Bhujel and his use of the title are fake and illegal.

Bhujel claims to be a “Tantrik Doctor” treating patients using Tantric methods and says he legally added “Dr.” to his name based on research in spiritual arts. However, Nepalese law clearly regulates the use of the title “Doctor.” According to the Nepal Medical Council Act, 2020, and related council notifications:However, Nepali law has clearly defined whether a doctor treating patients can use the title ‘Doctor’ before their name. According to the Nepal Medical Council Act, 2020, and the Council’s decision (with a notice issued in 2078), only those who meet the following criteria can use the title:

1. Graduate in Modern Medicine: To be called ‘Doctor,’ one must have obtained a Bachelor of Medicine (e.g., MBBS) or a higher degree in modern medical science from a recognized educational institution.

2. Registration with the Medical Council: After obtaining the degree, it is mandatory to register as a doctor with the Nepal Medical Council. The title ‘Doctor’ can be officially used only after the Council issues a registration certificate.

3. Restriction on Illegal Use: The law clearly prohibits anyone from using a degree, diploma, or title they have not obtained. A person who has not received the title of ‘Doctor’ from the concerned council (e.g., Medical Council) cannot write ‘Dr.’ before their name. Violating this provision is punishable under Section 27 (2) of the Act, with imprisonment of up to 3 years, a fine of Rs 3,000, or both.

Thus, according to the Council’s definition, the title ‘Doctor’ applies strictly within the modern medical system for those treating patients. It does not extend to Tantric practices or any other alternative methods.

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