The Newz Radar
Shimla: Five individuals were arrested by police in for issuing fake appointment letters for government jobs at the Himachal Pradesh Secretariat.
It was revealed during the investigation that the accused have defrauded around 25 youths of lakhs of rupees promising employment opportunities.
On Tuesday, the main accused, Ajaad (28), residing in Kotkhai, Shimla, was arrested. Late Wednesday night, three more accused from Solan, Jogindernagar, and Junga in Shimla were also apprehended.
Prior to this, on Tuesday night, a raid was conducted at the rented accommodation of the main accused, Ajaad, in Vikasnagar, where six fake appointment letters, a printer, a laptop, mobile phones, envelopes, diaries, and other documents were seized. On Wednesday, the police presented the accused in court and obtained remand. Given the suspicion of a larger conspiracy, the investigation team is further probing the case.
Preliminary investigation has revealed that the accused duped approximately 25 unemployed individuals by offering them government jobs. Many of them were issued fake appointment letters for joining in February and March. According to the police investigating the case, Paras Chhaparia and Ajay, residents of Palampur in Kangra district, presented appointment letters for clerks and clerks to the Special Administration Department of the Secretariat on February 19.
When Paras and Ajay reached the Secretariat, it was found that the appointment letters were fake. Following a complaint received by the deputy secretary of the Secretariat, both youths were questioned, revealing that they were duped by the accused, who deposited approximately Rs 50,000 to Rs 75,000 in their accounts and issued them with fake appointment letters.
Subsequently, a police team from Chhota Shimla police station, under the leadership of DSP Amit Thakur, initiated an investigation and arrested the accused immediately after interrogation. By Wednesday morning, the police had seized items related to the preparation of fake appointment letters from the accused’s room.
The accused, Ajaad, used to prepare fake appointment letters for clerk and chaprasi positions in his rented accommodation. He would dupe youths by depositing money into their accounts. The investigation team has also recovered documents such as a D.O. letter, black, blue, green, and red pens, diaries, and other documents from the rented accommodation.
It is being said that the accused got wind of the police raid and burned some suspicious items before their arrival. These items included burnt government stamps. The police have collected samples of the ashes for forensic examination at the Junga forensic lab.
