Councillor booked for submiting fake SC certificate

Sukhmeet Bhasin

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, September 22

The Bathinda police have registered a case against Independent municipal councillor from Ward Number 49, Gurmeet Kaur, over a fake SC certificate.

Investigation officer Kulwant Singh said “The case has been registered on the directions of First Class Judicial Magistrate Harinder Singh”. It is pertinent to mention that the Scheduled Caste certificate of Gurmeet Kaur was cancelled by the Director, Scheduled Caste/ Backward Classes Welfare Department, Punjab, in January this year.

The row over the certificate began last year when one Shakuntala Devi registered a complaint against the councillor, claiming that she had furnished a fake certificate.

A probe into the case by the Vigilance Bureau revealed that the certificate was indeed false and misleading.

Acting on the report submitted by the Vigilance Bureau, the then Deputy Commissioner, Diprava Lakra, had written to the tehsildar for cancellation of the certificate.

The report submitted by the Scheduled Caste/ Backward Classes Welfare Department stated that during the inquiry it was proved that Gurmeet Kaur was a Jatt Sikh and belonged to the general category. She was married to Gagandeep Singh, who belonged to SC category.

“On the basis of her marriage to Gagandeep, Gurmeet Kaur got an SC certificate (number 68850) issued in 2011,” the Department observed.