Senior J-K bureaucrat arrested for fudging date of birth

The Crime Branch has arrested a senior bureaucrat of Jammu and Kashmir government for allegedly fudging his date of birth in his service records, officials said.

An FIR was lodged against Commissioner/Secretary to the Government, ARI and Training Mohammad Mehraj-ud-din Khan, for "resorting to the change of date of birth in his service records," a spokesman of the Crime Branch said Saturday.

The Crime Branch had received a communication from the Government through General Administration Department stating that as per available records with it, Khan's date of birth is November 9, 1958.

The Government had to issue a notification with regard to the retirement of the said officer who is due to retire on November 2018.

Accordingly the officer was asked to submit his original service-book and date of birth certificate last year, followed by multiple reminders but the officer did not furnish the requisite records, the spokesman said.

The competent authority, on the basis of available records, approved notification of Khan's date of retirement as November 30, 2018, he said.

Later on the officer submitted his original service book in response to a fresh communication in March this year. During the perusal of the service records, date of birth was reflected as November 9, 1961, he added.

In view of the contradiction in date of birth, the matter was referred to the Director, Forensic Science Laboratory, J&K by GAD for examination.

The FSL expert opined that the first page of the original service-book has been inserted at a later stage and the provisional certificate in the original service book has been pasted on the typed certificate of Sher-i-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology, the spokesman said.

"The accused dishonestly and fraudulently has thus resorted to change of his date of birth and records on the service book, with malafide intention to enhance his service period by three years, he said adding a case under relevant sections of the law was registered in and investigation taken up.

The accused officer was arrested on Friday, the spokesman said.