NEW DELHI: The Rouse Avenue court has convicted a gazetted officer who secured an appointment in the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) by using fake experience certificates in 2001. Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate (ACJM) Mayank Goel convicted the accused, Gourav Malik, for the offences of cheating, using forged documents as genuine, and destruction of evidence. The judicial order comes 16 years after the initial appointment, following an internal departmental complaint that triggered legal proceedings against the official.
In the judgement delivered on May 29, the court noted that the documentary and circumstantial evidence on record directly connected Malik to the use of forged experience certificates to secure a government job. The prosecution successfully proved the charges for offences punishable under sections 420, 471, and 201 of the Indian Penal Code. However, the court held that the prosecution failed to prove charges under section 468 of the Indian Penal Code beyond a reasonable doubt, resulting in an acquittal for that specific offence.
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Background of the Appointment and Qualifications
The matter originally traces back to an appointment order dated January 17, 2001, which was issued on the recommendation of the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) following a letter dated January 3, 2000. Malik was appointed as a Training Officer (Business Services), a Group ‘B’ Gazetted post, under the vocational training programme for women of the Directorate General of Employment and Training (DGE&T). The essential qualifications required for this position included a Master’s Degree in Business Administration, Business Management, or Business Studies from a recognised university or institute or equivalent.
Additionally, the post mandated two years of relevant experience in the industry or training field after acquiring the degree, which had to include experience in the area of Training of Trainers. To meet these criteria, Malik submitted an experience certificate dated June 12, 1996, from Krishna Engineering Co. (KEC) in Bhopal. The document certified that he had been employed with the organisation as a Sales Manager and possessed more than three years of managing experience starting from March 10, 1993. A second certificate, dated June 30, 1999, was also submitted from the same firm, asserting that he continued to work there as a Sales Manager up until that time.
Departmental Inquiry and Referral to CBI
The irregularities remained undetected for over a decade and a half until a formal complaint was initiated from within the ministry. On July 6, 2016, JP Singh, who was serving as the Director of the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship under the Directorate General of Training (DGT), submitted an official complaint against Malik. The complaint alleged that the job of Training Officer had been secured through the UPSC entirely on the basis of fake, forged, and fabricated experience certificates.
Before the matter reached the court, a Preliminary Inquiry Officer conducted a departmental review of the credentials. The inquiry officer submitted a report stating that an act of forgery had been committed because the experience certificates could not be verified through official channels. Based on these findings, it was determined that the case required an investigation by an appropriate agency, leading to a decision to refer the matter to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) before taking any further steps.
Investigation and Filing of the Chargesheet
Following the formal registration of the case, a comprehensive investigation was carried out to establish the administrative trail of the deception. Upon completing the investigation, the Investigation Officer (IO) filed a formal chargesheet detailing the statutory violations committed by the official.
The chargesheet cited offences punishable under sections 420, 471, 467, and 468, read with section 201 of the Indian Penal Code on the part of Malik. The document specifically cited his capacity as a Training Officer within the Directorate General of Training (DGT), Women Training, under the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, completing the formal loop that ultimately led to the recent judicial conviction at the Rouse Avenue court.
