Bhopal, March 22
The Madhya Pradesh government has filed an FIR against former Transport Department constable Saurabh Sharma and his mother Uma Sharma for submitting fake affidavits to secure a compassionate appointment after his father's death.
The case has taken a dramatic turn, exposing a web of deceit and corruption.
Both stand accused of submitting fake affidavits to secure the compassionate appointment. In December 2024, multiple investigative agencies, including the State Lokayukta and the Income Tax Department, raided their properties, uncovering assets and cash worth millions.
Sirol police station, Gwalior in-charge Alok Singh Bhadauria confirmed to IANS that a case has been registered on charges of cheating and fraud.
A senior officer Kiran Kumar Sharma in the state Transport Department, Gwalior, has made a complaint against him in an official capacity.
The scandal erupted during the ongoing Assembly session, with opposition leaders relentlessly demanding accountability.
Under mounting pressure, the Transport Department finally filed a case against Saurabh and Uma Sharma, accusing them of fabricating documents.
State Transport Minister Uday Pratap Sigh, while responding to a calling attention motion during the ongoing Budget session on March 20, said that Saurabh was appointed on October 29, 2016, and took voluntary retirement on June 9, 2023.
Investigations by competent agencies are now focused on the wealth he accumulated both "before and after" his tenure in government service, the minister said.
The minister also disclosed in his written reply that Saurabh had not declared any relatives in government service. No objections were raised against his affidavit at the time, which necessitated no investigation.
However, once the issue surfaced, the government promptly wrote to the Home Department on March 3, 2025, asking them to file a case.
The Congress members had alleged that Saurabh's affidavit falsely claimed no family member was employed in government service - a key eligibility criterion for compassionate appointments.
In reality, his elder brother, Sachin Sharma, already held a government position in the Chhattisgarh government, a fact he deliberately concealed at the time of his appointment. This deception came to light through the efforts of RTI activist Sanket Sahu, who lodged a complaint with the Lokayukta.
Official probes confirmed the fraud, with service records and an employee list from Chhattisgarh's Finance Department verifying Sachin's employment in the Road Development Corporation in Raipur. This irrefutable evidence led to the filing of charges against both Saurabh and Uma Sharma for falsifying information.
Further investigations revealed that Uma had also submitted a fraudulent affidavit, perpetuating the lie that no family member held a government job.
A Lokayukta raid in December last year, intensified the fallout, making it clear that Saurabh's appointment violated rules barring such appointments if any dependent is already in government service. Eventually, Deputy Commissioner Kiran Kumar Sharma filed the case at Sirol police station, Gwalior acknowledging the seriousness of the issue as it dominated discussions in the state Assembly.
