Nashik cops investigate fake Kumbh Mela work orders

Nashik: The Nashik Road police have registered a cheating and forgery case against an unidentified person for uploading fake work orders worth Rs 35 crore related to Kumbh Mela infrastructure projects, the officials said.An FIR has been registered under BNS sections 318(1) (cheating), 336(2) (forgery), other relevant provisions, and sections of the Information Technology Act, based on a complaint filed by an official of the divisional commissioner's office, Nashik Road.Senior inspector Jitendra Sapkale said the case came to light on Tuesday when a person approached the divisional commissioner's office seeking verification of work orders allegedly issued to install, operate and maintain CCTV cameras for the upcoming Kumbh Mela at Trimbakeshwar, Nashik, as well as for providing AI-based security systems for the event.On scrutiny, senior officials found that the work orders, amounting to Rs 35 crore, bore a fake digital signature of divisional commissioner Pravin Gedam. The police said the signature on the documents significantly differed from the official digital signature.The documents were subsequently examined by Pravin Gedam himself, who confirmed that the work orders were forged. Inspector Sapkale said the fake work orders had been created and uploaded on the internet by an unidentified person. The man who brought the documents to the office told officials that he had received them from another person for verification purposes.The police said further investigation is underway to trace those involved in creating and circulating the forged work orders.