Patna High Court: Ahsanuddin Amanullah, J., rejected the bail application of the applicant-accused in connection with the FIR registered for offence punishable under Sections 420, 467, 468 and 471 of the Penal Code, 1860.
The present case arises from the allegations that have been levelled against the applicant that she had bagged the job of a panchayat teacher on the basis of a forged TET certificate. Consequent to this an FIR was registered and the applicant, apprehending arrest has now filed an application for anticipatory bail.
Counsel for the petitioner, Umesh Chandra Verma has submitted that the applicant is not a party to any forgery and even if it was done, the certificate wasn’t created by the applicant. In this situation, only Section 471 of the IPC would be attracted as no offence other than the act of producing a certificate for obtaining employment can be attributed to the applicant. The offence under Section 471 IPC is bailable. It has been mentioned that the applicant was not aware that the certificate being produced by her is forged and fabricated and that the applicant has no criminal history.
Counsel for the respondent, Ajay Mishra has vehemently objected to the present application contending that upon verification of the applicant’s TET certificate from the Bihar School Examination Board it was revealed that the applicant had not even cleared the exam but has still obtained a certificate through illegal means saying otherwise. The applicant cannot escape liability as to the act of producing the fake certificate also raises the presumption that she was also party to the process of creation of the same. Since the applicant obtained the job of a teacher being fully aware that a TET certificate was the basic requirement and that she had not cleared the examination, the most obvious presumption would be that the applicant is accountable for all the acts that were committed including the creation of the forged document.
In view of the above, the Court rejected the application for anticipatory bail finding the applicant’s arguments unconvincing.[Pallavi Priyadarshani v. State of Bihar, 2020 SCC OnLine Pat 1319, decided on 09-09-2020]
