Indian IT employee caught moonlighting in New York:Earned ₹42 lakh extra; risks 15 years of jail term; know what is moonlighting

An Indian-origin person Mehul Goswami in America could face 15 years in jail for moonlighting charges. Mehul is accused of having a private job during government employment and earning extra money. This is a serious class of crime in New York. On 15 October, the Saratoga County Sheriff’s Office arrested Goswami on charges of second-degree grand larceny. In this case, Goswami could face up to 15 years in prison. What is the case? In New York, 39-year-old Mehul was working as a project coordinator in the state’s government IT department (Office of Information Technology Services). From this job, he earned about ₹1.18 crore in 2024. In March 2022, Mehul also joined work at Global Foundries, a semiconductor company in Malta near New York, while he was already employed in a government job. In this case, they took a salary from the government job while pretending to work, while actually focusing on their private job. Through this, they earned an extra $50,000 (approximately ₹42 lakh). What did Mehul Goswami do wrong? Mehul did private work during government job hours, which resulted in loss of taxpayers’ money. In American law, this was considered ‘grand larceny’ (major theft), which is a serious crime. What is Moonlighting? Moonlighting means doing another job during free time besides your main job, like freelancing or tutoring, to earn extra income. It’s called ‘moonlighting’ because people used to work extra in the moonlight at night. This is done to earn money, increase skills or pursue hobbies. How was Mehul Goswami caught? In 2024, an investigation against Goswami began from an anonymous email. The email accused Goswami of working for a private company during the same hours while having a state job. Inspector General Lucy Lang, who is looking into the case, said, Public sector employees have a responsibility to work honestly. Goswami’s behavior is a major violation of public trust. Having another full-time job is misuse of government resources and taxpayers’ money. This can result in up to 15 years imprisonment. What are the rules for moonlighting in India? In India, there is no direct law that completely declares moonlighting illegal or unlawful. Therefore, it varies from company to company. ​