Ex-IPS, wife face forgery case, accused of misusing official position in UP

AFormer IPS ship's officer and his married woman feature been engaged for alleged forgery, cheating and abuse of official position in connection with a two-decade-old case of industrial plot allotment in Uttar Pradesh's Deoria. The couple has been accused of fabricating documents to secure an industrial plot. They have dismissed the case, calling it a ‘personal vendetta.’However, former IPS officer Amitabh Thakur and his wife Nutan Thakur, booked for alleged forgery and cheating, have dismissed the allegations as “political vendetta,” asserting their innocence would be proven.Allegations against ex-IPS, his wifeThe complaint against them was filed by Alok Kumar Srivastava, who has alleged that the couple used forged sale deeds, transfer documents, and bank challans to illegally claim ownership of the industrial plot. Nutan Thakur has been accused of fabricating documents, including an affidavit and an identity paper. The forgery was done in 1999, and the papers were submitted to the General Manager of the District Industries Centre, Deoria. This was done in an effort to secure Plot no B-2.Also read: Haryana health director among three booked in cheating, forgery caseAmitabh Thakur, who was then posted as Superintendent of Police in Deoria, abused his position of power to influence the allotment process and protected this illegal act, giving government benefits to himself and his family.The complainant has sought action against the couple under relevant sections relating to criminal conspiracy, forgery, cheating, and misuse of position, as well as departmental and vigilance inquiries. He has also demanded that the plot in question be confiscated and all related sale and transfer deeds be cancelled.Couple's clarification on the matterThe accused couple issued a statement clarifying that the FIR against them is “completely politically motivated” and has been filed in retaliation for their consistent effort to expose alleged misconduct by senior government officials.They said that the old civil dispute needed to be transformed into a criminal case and registered nearly 25 years later, which indicated “a case of vendetta.” "We are fully confident that we will soon prove our innocence in this matter with facts," the couple said in their statement.An investigation into the matter is currently underway.Authorities have been urged to involve other agencies, including CBCID, SIT, or CBI, for a detailed investigation due to the alleged misuse of police powers at the time.Further, an FIR has been filed at the Talkatora police station in Lucknow related to the matter under section 420,467, 468, 471, 120 B, among others.(With PTI inputs)