The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) searched eight places on 3rd February in West Bengal including Kolkata and the 24 North Parganas district in response to allegations of fraudulent use of residence credentials to obtain benefits granted to border-area residents in Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) recruitment, according to officials.
The Calcutta High Court ordered the agency to look into complaints that a number of candidates were illegally recruited into the armed forces and the CAPFs by using forged domicile documents that claimed that they were from border areas. This allowed them to pass the examination with lower cut-off marks. The probe was taken over by the CBI in August of last year.
Notably, the FIR has asserted that certain citizens of Pakistan had also benefited from the same by using forged certificates. However, no more about the Pakistanis has been made available so far.
CBI also arrested two officers in connection with the case. One of them is Rajatkanti Mandal, an officer in charge of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes offices in the District Magistrate’s office.
According to officials, the action took place at the homes of fraudsters who were purportedly involved in fabricating residency paperwork. Judge Jay Sengupta reviewed the preliminary investigation results of the CBI and ruled that while there were no anomalies in the armed services recruitment process, there were four cases in the Central Para Military forces.
Justice Jay Sengupta highlighted, “However, as regards employment in the Central Para Military Forces, some irregularities have already been detected. During preliminary enquiry, at least four such instances have come to light.” He added that West Bengal permits lesser cut-off scores in the exams for employment in the Central Para Military Forces because it is a border state.
The judge cited testimony from the deputy solicitor general and proclaimed, “This seems to have prompted people from other states, especially from the northern part of the country, to forge documents to show that they were domiciled in the State of West Bengal.”
He further noted, “Domicile certificates, matriculation certificates and caste certificates have been forged. It will be a matter of a more in-depth investigation whether foreign nationals have also taken recourse to the same modus operandi in applying for jobs in the Indian forces.”
