The Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) has filed a complaint against one of its employees for defrauding the organization by providing a fake disability certificate. The Kherwadi police have registered a case of cheating and forgery against the accused and his associate.
Details of case
According to the information provided by the police, the accused, Vikas Dhole, was working as a senior clerk in MHADA since January of this year. Dhole had appeared for a written examination to secure a job in MHADA in September 2021, during which he submitted a disability certificate, claiming to have lost 60% of his vision.
The complaint alleges that the co-accused, Navnath Godse, who was appointed as his munshi (clerk), had also provided fake educational certificates.
A Kherwadi police official stated that during the recruitment process, Dhole had provided a photocopy of the disability certificate issued by the district surgeon of Buldhana. When MHADA attempted to verify its authenticity, they became suspicious.
No such certificate was issued by the hospital
Upon initiating an investigation, the organization discovered that Dhole had sent an application for the certificate to the government hospital in Buldhana, but it was never issued by them.
In July, after learning about these discrepancies, MHADA asked Dhole to undergo a physical examination at JJ Hospital. For this examination, Dhole was required to submit the original documents from the hospital, but he submitted Xerox copies instead. In response, MHADA issued a show cause notice to Dhole regarding the failure to submit the original documents, after which Dhole stopped coming to work.
MHADA lodges complaint
Subsequently, MHADA appointed an officer who lodged a complaint in the matter. Following the police's receipt of the complaint, Dhole and another accused, Ghodse, were booked under sections 420 (cheating and dishonesty), 465 (forgery), 467 (forgery of valuable security, will, etc.), 468 (forgery for the purpose of cheating), and 471 (using forged documents as genuine).
A police officer mentioned that the matter is currently under investigation, and both accused individuals will be called for questioning soon.