RAJESH THAKUR Vs. CENTRAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION

JUDGEMENT

(1.) IN this petition, filed under the provisions of Section 439 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, petitioner is seeking grant of bail from custody, in relation to FIR No. RC0962012S0007, dated 6.6.2012, under the provisions of Sections 120 -B, 420, 467 and 468 of the Indian Penal Code, registered at Police Station, CBI, Shimla, District Shimla, H.P. Petitioner was arrested on 16.2.2013. His bail application stands dismissed by the learned Sessions Judge, Shimla on 8.3.2013. Uninfluenced of the same, the present petition is being considered and disposed of on its own merits. In support of the petition, Mr. N.S. Chandel, Advocate has made the following submissions - (i) from the record, it cannot be said that petitioner is even remotely connected with or guilty of having committed an offence of forgery; (ii) the alleged forged documents were never used by the petitioner for obtaining employment; (iii) petitioner is in judicial custody for the last about ninety days; and (iv) petitioner, who is suffering from ailment, needs urgent medical treatment.

(2.) LEARNED Assistant Solicitor General of India has opposed the petition, inter alia, on the ground that petitioner is involved in a heinous crime of forging documents and also using the same for the purpose of seeking public employment. He has manipulated and forged documents with respect to several persons, including his near relations, who also have obtained public employment. Petitioner is the Managing Director of the Educational Institute by the name of Thakur College of Education, Dhaliara, District Kangra and his co -accused Dilesh Kumar Singh is the Director of the said Institute. In relation to the same, petitioner and his co -accused have obtained permissions from statutory bodies/Government on the basis of forged documents. Investigation is not complete as it is required to be found out as to in how many cases, petitioner has actually forged or obtained forged documents. There is every likelihood of the petitioner influencing the witnesses, hampering the investigation and tampering with the record, which still needs to be recovered.

(3.) INVESTIGATION revealed that petitioner, in connivance with his co -accused, allegedly obtained degrees, in different disciplines of educational courses, in his favour as also in favour of his brother Anuj Thakur, Yashbir Singh and sister Kiran Kumari from Magadh University, Bodh Gaya and also in favour of his another brother Barinder Singh from Bihar Intermediate Education Council, Patna. Based on the same, these persons applied for and obtained jobs in different Government educational institutions within the State of Himachal Pradesh. When the matter was investigated, it was found that the degrees were fake and as such, services of some of these persons were terminated.