Jalpaiguri: A civic volunteer has been arrested on charges of forging police clearance certificates at the Malbazar Police Station. The accused has been identified as Monirul Islam, a resident of the Nizambari area under Kumlai Gram Panchayat.
According to police sources, police clearance certificates are required for candidates applying for temporary labour positions in the Army. These certificates are generally issued online following an application process. Recently, several local youths had applied for such certificates for Army recruitment purposes.
It has been alleged that Monirul Islam prepared forged certificates for at least 22 candidates. The documents bore the fake signature of the officer in-charge (IC) of Malbazar Police Station.
Police suspect that Monirul prepared the certificates offline without informing or involving the police department.
He is also accused of forging official signatures and issuing the documents in exchange for money.
Based on a formal complaint, Monirul Islam was arrested on Monday and produced before the Jalpaiguri court.
Malbazar Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO) Deshmukh Pradeep Roshan confirmed the arrest, stating: “The civic volunteer has been taken into custody following the complaint. An investigation is currently underway.”