JATINDER SINGH Vs. STATE OF PUNJAB

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner seeks grant of regular bail in respect of a case registered against him vide FIR No.155 dtd. 1/8/2021 under Ss. 406, 409, 381, 419, 420, 465, 467, 468, 471, 201/120-B IPC at Police Station Urban Estate, District Patiala.

(2.) The FIR in question pertains to misappropriation of funds of Punjabi University, Patiala by several of its employees, students and some outsiders as well. The FIR in question was lodged pursuant to a complaint made by Dr. Vikramjit Kumar Kaushik, Registrar, Punjabi University, Patiala wherein initially only 7 persons were named as accused namely Nishu Chaudhary, Jatinder Singh (Sevadar), Akashdeep Singh, Sonu Kumar, Harpreet Singh (s/o Karnail Singh), Vinay and Nisha Sharma.

(3.) It is alleged that it had been brought to the knowledge of Vice-Chancellor, Punjabi University, Patiala that a fraud had been committed regarding salary/scholarship bills in the names of Akashdeep Singh Jabbal, Sonu Kumar, Harpreet Singh(s/o Karnail Singh), Jatinder Singh, Vinay, Nisha Sharma, all relating to Department of Chemistry, Punjabi University, Patiala on the basis of forgery and fabrication and lacs of rupees had been misappropriated. The Vice-Chancellor constituted a Committee comprising of three members headed by the Registrar which conducted inquiry into the matter, during the course of which record was perused and disputed bills were got examined from Handwriting Expert Dr. Inderjit Singh and it was concluded that the disputed signatures on the bills in question were forged and did not match with those of Dr. Baljit Singh, Co-ordinator/Head of UGC-SAP Program of Chemistry Department. It was further found that Nishu Chaudhary and Jatinder Singh prepared forged salary bills of Research Fellows. The Committee found that the bills had been filled in by Nishu Chaudhary and Jatinder Singh who were working together in DPM office and that Jatinder Singh had affixed the forged signatures of Dr. Baljit Singh and that fake rubber stamp had also been affixed on the forged signature of Dr. Baljit Singh on the seven bills which were being examined. It was found that Smt. Raminder Kaur, Superintendent had also connived with Nishu Chaudhary and Jatinder Singh and had prepared and passed the seven forged salary/scholarship bills of Research Fellows pertaining to period w.e.f. January 2021 to April 2021. It was found that none of the beneficiaries were genuine Research Fellows and that the scheme under which the amounts were being claimed had ended in the year 2019. TheCommittee concluded that Nishu Chaudhary, Raminder Kaur and Jatinder Singh, Peon had stolen/misplaced/destroyed establishment checking records pertaining to the years 2019-2020, 2020-2021 and 2021-2022 so as to avoid detection. Nishu Chaudhary is also alleged to have made changes in the utilization certificates of UGC-CAS (Physics).