Phulbani: A RBI officer was today arrested and sent to jail on charge of producing a fake caste certificate to get the job in Odisha's Kandhamal district.
The officer is identified as Prasant Kumar Pradhan (58)of Bastangia village and was caught faking caste certificate after remaining in service for 36 years.
Though Pradhan belonged to the Scheduled Caste, he produced a Scheduled Tribe certificate to the RBI authorities and got appointment as a typist. Meanwhile, Pradhan had been promoted to the post of assistant manager.
"Pradhan was arrested under section 420, 468, and 471 of IPC (forgery/cheating) on the basis of FIR filed by Kandhamal District Welfare Officer (DWO) Paramananda Prusty," Inspector In-Charge of Tikabali police station, L N Tiwari said.
The DWO lodged the complaint after state-level scrutiny committee, inquiring into the issue of fake caste certificate in the state, confirmed forgery by Pradhan.
With this, the number of persons arrested in fake caste certificate cases in Kandhamal district increased to 40 in last two years, officials said. Those arrested include engineers, teachers, and members and former members of gram panchayats.
Tribal outfit, Kui Samaj Samannaya Samiti, has launched an agitation demanding action against those availing government benefits by producing fake certificates.
The police has constituted a cell in the district to take action against persons accused of forging caste certificates.Fake caste certificate issue was one of the major factors behind the communal riots in Kandhamal in 2008.