IAS Santosh Verma’s fake promotion under scrutiny:Typist who prepared the order arrested; original document still missing after 4 years

The arrest of a court typist has intensified the legal troubles of IAS officer Santosh Verma, who is also the provincial president of AJAKS, in a case involving an alleged fake court order used to secure promotion to the Indian Administrative Service. Police on December 19 arrested Nitu Singh Chauhan, a court employee accused of typing the forged order that ultimately benefited Verma. Chauhan was produced before the court and sent to police remand for further questioning. Despite the arrest, investigators have yet to recover the original court order on the basis of which Verma, then a State Administrative Service (SAS) officer, was promoted to the IAS. The absence of the original signed document remains the central unresolved issue in the case, even after four years of investigation. Read the full report.. Arrest after police interrogation According to police, Nitu Singh Chauhan was called for questioning to record his statement. However, during interrogation, facts emerged that led to his arrest. Chauhan is accused of preparing and typing a fake order purportedly issued by a special judge’s court. Police will now question him about how the forged order was typed, how its copies were prepared, and most importantly, where the original document is located. Chauhan was earlier posted as a typist in the court of then Special Judge Vijendra Rawat, at the time the alleged fake judgment was created. He is currently posted at the Family Court in Indore. Fake order prepared in Special Judge’s court Police allege that a court order was prepared in favour of Santosh Verma which had no existence in the official records of the court. By submitting a certified copy of this order to the administration, Verma allegedly secured promotion to the IAS, amounting to a serious violation of service rules. A Special Investigation Team (SIT) constituted to probe the case seized key evidence in 2021. This included the computer system of then Special Judge Vijendra Rawat and a pen drive. The digital devices contained soft copies of two different judgments related to the case. However, investigators have still not found the original hard copy of the judgment that should bear the judge’s signature. According to ACP Kotwali Vinod Dixit, technical analysis and preliminary investigation have established that the fake judgments were typed by Nitu Singh Chauhan. Two court decisions, one promotion Investigators say the case took a more serious turn after it emerged that not one, but two different court decisions were presented by Santosh Verma to obtain promotion. The first decision claimed that the case against Verma had been closed on the basis of a compromise. However, when it was pointed out that relief obtained through compromise is not valid under promotion rules, a second court decision was produced. This second order stated that Verma had been fully acquitted by the court. When authorities attempted to verify this acquittal order, no such judgment was found in the official court records. This discrepancy led to the exposure of the alleged fraud. Impact on IAS officer and judge With the arrest of the typist, the difficulties for both Santosh Verma and then Special Judge Vijendra Rawat are expected to increase. Rawat is currently on anticipatory bail, while Verma has been granted bail by the Supreme Court. Police allege that Verma is not cooperating with the investigation. ACP Dixit indicated that if this continues, police may approach the court seeking cancellation of his bail. In November, amid the ongoing controversy, Santosh Verma was elected provincial president of AJAKS, adding a political dimension to the case. Prosecution and defence stand The case has seen prolonged legal arguments in different courts. The prosecution has maintained that Santosh Verma was fully aware that no valid court decision existed in his favour, yet he applied for a certified copy and used it to obtain promotion. Opposing Verma’s bail in the High Court, the prosecution pointed out that on October 17, 2020, Verma applied for a certified copy of a judgment dated October 6, 2020. According to investigators, this itself raises questions about how Verma knew of a judgment that was never uploaded on the court’s Case Management Information System (CMIS). On the other hand, Verma’s counsel has argued that he has been falsely implicated. The defence claims that the October 6, 2020 judgment was present in the court file and that officials have acknowledged this in their statements. Citing the Supreme Court judgment in Sheela Sebastian vs R. Jawahar Raj (2018), the defence has argued that Verma neither forged documents nor committed fraud. Even after four years, multiple arrests and extensive investigation, the core question remains unanswered: where is the original court order allegedly bearing the judge’s signature? Police say that without the original document, signature verification is not possible. Investigators also need handwriting samples of Santosh Verma to determine who wrote the application seeking the certified copy of the judgment. ACP Dixit said, We currently only have a copy of a copy. We do not have the original order. Notices have been sent to Santosh Verma and Vijendra Rawat in this regard. As the investigation continues, the recovery of the original order is seen as crucial to determining accountability in a case that has raised serious questions about the integrity of judicial records and the process of administrative promotions. The troubles may increase for AJAKS Provincial President and IAS officer Santosh Verma who commented on Brahmins. Police arrested court employee Nitu Singh Chauhan on December 19. Nitu Singh is accused of typing the fake court order that benefited IAS officer Santosh Verma. However, police have not yet found the original order based on which the State Administrative Service (SAS) officer received promotion to Indian Administrative Service (IAS). Police had called Nitu Singh Chauhan for recording statement, but based on facts revealed during questioning, he was arrested and presented in court, from where he was sent to police remand. Now police will interrogate him about the typing of that fake order, the process of preparing its copies and most importantly, the whereabouts of that original document. Read full report… Now learn sequentially what investigation police conducted Had typed fake order of Special Judge’s court
Police alleges that at the time when this alleged fake judgment was written, Neetusingh Chauhan was posted as a typist in the court of then Special Judge Vijendra Rawat. Currently he is posted at the Family Court in Indore. According to police, a court order was prepared in favor of Santosh Verma which had no existence in the official records of the court. By submitting a certified copy of the same order to the administration, Verma obtained promotion, which was a major fraud with the rules. The Special Investigation Team (SIT) constituted to investigate this entire matter had seized important evidence in 2021. SIT had seized Special Judge Vijendra Rawat’s computer system and a pen drive, which contained digital copies of two different judgments. However, despite these digital copies, police have not yet found the original hard copy of that decision which should have had the judge’s signature. According to ACP Kotwali Vinod Dixit, preliminary investigation and technical evidence have made it clear that the fake judgments were typed by Neetusingh Chauhan. The Game of Promotion: Not One, But Two Decisions Were Presented
This case is shocking because Santosh Verma presented two different court decisions to the administration to get promotion in the IAS cadre. When the court records were searched to verify the authenticity of this “acquittal” decision, no such judgment was found. This is where the entire fraud was exposed. Typist’s arrest increases troubles for judge and IAS
After Neetusingh Chauhan’s arrest, the difficulties are set to increase for then Special Judge Vijendra Rawat and main beneficiary IAS Santosh Verma, who were already accused in this case. Vijendra Rawat is currently on anticipatory bail, while Santosh Verma has received bail from the Supreme Court. Police allege that Santosh Verma is not cooperating in the investigation. ACP Dixit indicated that if Verma maintains this attitude, police may knock on the court’s door to get his bail cancelled. Arguments of Prosecution and Defense This case has seen a long battle in the courts. The prosecution told the court that Santosh Verma had full knowledge that no decision had been made in his case, yet he applied for a certified copy and used it for promotion. Objecting to Verma’s bail in the High Court, the prosecution said that on October 17, 2020, Verma applied for a certified copy of the October 6, 2020 judgment, which itself shows his collusion in this matter. How Verma came to know about the October 6, 2020 judgment has not been clarified till date. This judgment was never uploaded on the court’s online system (CMIS). Meanwhile, Santosh Verma’s lawyer said that his client was falsely implicated. Their argument is that the October 6, 2020 judgment was present in the court file and all officials have acknowledged this in their statements. Citing the Supreme Court’s old judgment in Sheela Sebastian vs R. Jawahar Raj (2018), they said that Verma neither forged any documents nor committed fraud. Biggest question even after four years: Where is the original order?
After four years of investigation, multiple arrests and court hearings, the police still stands at the same question from where this case began. The original order, which allegedly bears the judge’s signature, who has it?