1981 PLP (C (PLC(CS))

MUSHTAK ALI KAZI (CHAIRMAN).‑Appellant Haq Nawaz serving as Motor Vehicle Inspector in Sind Police Department has been dismissed from service after a show‑cause notice by order of the Deputy Inspector- General of Police dated 22.7‑1976 for having secured this employment by misrepresentation in respect of his academic qualifications. Being aggrieved Mr. Haq Nawaz has filed this appeal before the Tribunal on 22-8‑1979. The facts of the case in brief are that the appellant sent an application to the then Governor of Sind Mr. Mumtaz Ali Bhutto requesting for appoint ment as Motor Vehicle Examiner in Police Department stating that if he was not appointed he had decided to commit suicide by throwing himself' under the car of the Governor. The Governor forwarded this application to the Inspector‑General of Police with an endorsement "please appoint him" dated 28‑3‑1972. When this application came before the Inspector‑General of Police, Sind the appellant was required to make a regular application giving particulars of his academic qualifications etc. as the prescribed qualifica tion for this post was a degree in Mechanical Engineering. The appellant gave application stating his academic qualifications as B. E. Mech: from N. E. D. Engineering College, Karachi. This application bore the signature of the appellant dated 27‑7‑1972. To this application was attached photostat copy of the degree certificate of University of Karachi certifying that Haq Nawaz son of Mirza Khan Seat No. 221 bad passed B. E. Mechanical Examination held in December, 1969 in First Class. The degree certificate bore the usual signatures of the Vice‑Chancellor and the Registrar. The appellant was accordingly given an appointment order and he completed his training also. It was then discovered that he had produced a fake degree certificate and he was a person with no qualifications being a student of diploma course in Civil Engineering. Investigation revealed that no such candidate with that seat number had appeared in B. E. examina tion of that year. The appellant was then challaned in the Court of Sub -Divisional Magistrate, Civil Line, Karachi for offences under section 420/468/471, P. P. C. This challan was submitted in Court by Prosecuting Inspector, Civil Lines on 6‑4‑1976. The case proceeded in the Court of the S. D. M. In the course of the proceedings A. I. G. Traffic Mr. Israrul Haq, Saeedullah Khan, Assistant Degree Section, University of Karachi and Syed Mehboob Ali, Stenographer, Police Department were examined. The application of the appellant showing his qualification as B. E. Mech. and the photostat copy of the B. E. degree certificate were produced and exhibited. The witness from Karachi University testified that the decree certificate was not genuine and no such candidate had offered himself for examination. The printed form of certificate was also different from that used by University of Karachi. The case had proceeded throughout before Sub‑Divisional Magistrate, Civil Lines when on 18‑4‑1979 it came up before Additional City Magistrate Docks Mr. G. M. Brohi. An application was scribbled by Mr. M. Waheed Kazi, Advocate for accused purporting to be under section 249‑A, Cr. P. C., that the prosecu tion had failed to prove the case against the accused beyond reasonable doubt. On this application the learned Magistrate passed an order on the same day without any notice to the prosecution. The order is as under: ‑ "Heard the prosecution and defence Advocate for accused Haq Nawaz. The case is as old as of 1974. The prosecution has not been able to produce sufficient evidence to warrant conviction. There is no probability of conviction on the evidence on record. Accused is accordingly acquitted under section 249‑A, Cr. P. C. and the bail bond is cancelled." Meanwhile A. I. G. Police Motor Transport, Karachi had also issued show‑cause notice under the Efficiency and Discipline Rules to the appellant. After getting the reply of the appellant an order was passed dated 22‑7‑1976 dismissing him from Service. The appellant then preferred mercy petition to the Home Secretary and thereafter filed the present appeal. An Office objection was raised before admission that the appeal was not maintainable as the departmental appeal against the dismissal bad not been preferred by the appellant to the Inspector‑General of Police. The appellant asked for time to show that he had filed the appeal to the Inspector‑General of Police and on 9‑3‑1980 he produced a photo copy of a letter purporting to have been signed by A. I. G. Police Mr. G. N. Bhutto stating that his appeal submitted to Inspector‑General of Police was being sent to Home Department. On the basis of this letter the appeal was admitted. The written statement filed by the respondents, however showed that no such appeal had ever been preferred to the Inspector‑General of Police and the letter produced by the appellant was forged. The written statement also mentioned that even the Matriculation certificate submitted by the appellant contained over-writings and alterations in the date of birth for which a separate case had been registered against him. Since the crucial document, namely, the application of the appellant to the Inspector‑General of Police showing his academic qualifications as B. E. Mech. had been produced in the record of the criminal case disposed of by Additional City Magistrate, Docks on 18‑4‑1979 efforts were made to obtain the record of that case from the Court concerned. The record was not received though requisitioned and ultimately it was obtained through an Officer deputed by this Tribunal. As anticipated, it was found that the crucial document Exh. I. B. was missing from the record. Thus apart from the alleged forgery of the B. E. degree certificate and Matriculation certificate an attempt was made to get this appeal admitted on the basis of an allegedly forged letter purporting to have been signed by A. I: G. The criminal proceedings had been terminated in a‑summary manner and the incriminating document from the file of that case had been destroyed. When all these facts disclosed themselves at the hearing of this appeal, the learned counsel for the appellant after consulting his client hurriedly presented an application for withdrawal of the appeal filed against the order of dismissal. In the result the appeal is dismissed as withdrawn with no orders as to costs. It is surprising that after the main evidence regarding use of forged degree certificate for obtaining employment, had been recorded by the Sub‑Divisional Magistrate and only the Investigating Officer remained to be examined, the case came up before Additional City Magistrate, Docks, who disposed of the case in two lines acquitting the accused. No acquittal appeal was preferred and even the incriminating document mysteriously disappeared from the record of this case. It is also unfortunate that a person seeking employment in the Police Department should resort to these methods and make a beginning in his career, by allegedly committing for geries and cheating. It is not known how many such forged degree certificates remain in circulation and bow many persons have secured employment on the basis of such certificates. Those questions are of sufficient public importance. A copy of this order may accordingly be forward‑.d to the Home Secretary for perusal and such further action as may be deemed expedient under the circumstances of the case.