Vadodara corporator lodges complaint against Common Service Centre for ‘using her fake stamps, signatures'
In wake of the recent crackdown against alleged illegal Bangladeshi immigrants in Gujarat, Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) corporator from Ward 12, Twinkle Trivedi, on Saturday lodged a complaint with the Vadodara Taluka police station after learning that a private Common Service Centre (CSC) had allegedly been using her fake stamps and signatures to process government services for citizens.
The issue came to light on Saturday when the BJP leader's husband allegedly randomly visited a private CSC Centre to check the work and discovered unauthorised forms on the work table of the CSC operator along with a rubber stamp of the corporator.
Trivedi told The Indian Express, 'My husband had stepped out in the Bhayli area on Saturday and when he saw work in progress at a private CSC Centre in the area, he just decided to check… To his surprise, he came across forms bearing my rubber stamp as well as a forged signature that does not even match mine, perhaps being used for Aadhaar address updation… He called me from the spot and shared the photos of the form, which is when I confirmed that it was a fake form. We decided to approach the police.'
Immediately, Trivedi arrived at the Vadodara Taluka police station on Saturday evening to lodge a complaint. She said, 'This is a serious issue, in wake of the crackdown on illegal Bangladeshi immigrants in the state. It is also an eye-opener as most of us, corporators, will remain unaware if private centres like these are forging stamps and signatures… I will take up the issue with the authorities seeking that the stamp and signature of the corporators be allowed only in person… I have also urged the 75 other corporators of the VMC to come forward and check the dealings of private CSC centres in their own areas.'
Trivedi added that the CSC centre in question had been running for over six months and offered services for various government schemes, including Aadhaar card update.
Vadodara Superintendent of Police Rohan Anand confirmed to this newspaper that an FIR has been lodged under Sections of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for forgery. Anand said, 'Based on the complaint of the Corporator, an FIR has been lodged at the Vadodara Taluka police station for forgery of documents related to an elected representative. One person from the CSC centre has been taken into custody for questioning.'
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