Police file chargesheets against 5 men in Latur courts in case of fabricating suicide notes

Latur, Oct 14 (PTI) Police on Tuesday filed three chargesheets in different courts in Latur district of Maharashtra against five individuals accused of fabricating suicide notes of people who ended their lives in the recent past.

According to police, the accused attempted to mislead law enforcement officials and the state government by producing false information to exert pressure for caste-based reservations, jobs, and financial compensation.

Suicide notes purportedly written by the victims, all residents of Latur district, were forged by their relatives or acquaintances to build pressure on the government over the quota issue and to seek financial aid, they said.

Investigations revealed the accused had deliberately made forged notes, making them appear as if written by the deceased. Based on scientific evidence and forensic analysis, authorities confirmed that the accused had intentionally falsified documents and provided misleading information, according to police.

The forgery came to light earlier this month. All the alleged suicides were now being treated as accidental death, police said without disclosing the exact number of such cases.

Accordingly, criminal cases were registered against five persons -- Dhanaji Shivaji Mule (38), Madhav Ramrao Pitale (43), Shivaji Fattu Jadhav (58), Narendra Vitthal Jakkalwad (26) and Tanaji Madhukar Jadhav (25) -- at Ahmadpur, Nilanga and Chakur police stations in Latur district.

The cases were filed under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) sections related to forgery, forged document or electronic record and using it as genuine, providing false evidence and furnishing false information to a public servant, among others. These offences carry punishment up to seven years in jail.

During the inquiry, investigators collected scientific and documentary evidence that confirmed how the accused fabricated the suicide notes. The accused, who were detained but not arrested, confessed to their involvement in the crime during questioning, police said.

Based on the evidence gathered during the investigation, police filed three chargesheets against the accused in tehsil courts having jurisdiction over the police stations where cases were registered, they added. PTI COR RSY