Man held for issuing fake fitness certificates to vehicles

A 32-year-old man was arrested in Thane district of Maharashtra for allegedly issuing fake fitness certificates of the regional transport office (RTO) to commercial vehicles, police said on Thursday.

A fitness certificate is an official document certifying that the holder's vehicle is fit for being driven in public places.

The accused, Anil Sachdev, used to charge Rs 3,000 per certificate for a goods carrier, a police spokesperson said.

He was arrested on Monday near the Thane railway station after a transporter complained that the accused gave him a fake vehicle fitness certificate.

On verification, the police found that the transporter's certificate was not issued by the RTO, she said.

He was booked under Indian Penal Code Sections for cheating and forgery and a probe was underway to find out how many fake certificates were issued by him, the official added.

The Bombay High Court last year said the practice of issuing fitness certificates to private vehicles without conducting an independent test was illegal.

As per the Motor Vehicles Act, a vehicle must have a fitness certificate issued by the manufacturer, and also, another fitness certificate issued by the state RTO authorities after the inspection of its condition, pollution certificate, tax, insurance, and other such details.