Srinagar, Feb 5 (IANS) Jammu and Kashmir Crime Branch said on Thursday that it has filed a charge sheet in the court of law against a person illegally appointed as Assistant Professor in Sher-e-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS), Soura, Srinagar.

A statement issued by the Crime Branch, Kashmir, said, “The case pertains to allegations that Ms. Afshan Shabir, who was appointed as Assistant Professor at SKIMS Soura in 2019, is a United Kingdom national and an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card holder, thereby rendering her ineligible for appointment to a Government post.”

Investigation revealed that the accused applied for the post pursuant to Advertisement Notice No. 04 of 2015 as an in-service candidate and submitted documents, including a State Subject Certificate, declaring herself to be an Indian citizen and a permanent resident of Jammu and Kashmir.

Based on these declarations, she was selected and appointed.

During the course of the investigation, official records, including her service book, personal file, application form, and selection committee minutes, were seized and examined.

It came to the fore that the accused had acquired British citizenship before her government service and allegedly concealed this fact while applying for and continuing in Government service.

The accused admitted to holding a British passport and an OCI card. The investigation established that by misrepresenting her citizenship status, the accused fraudulently secured a public post, causing wrongful gain to herself and corresponding loss to the Government, the statement read.

Shabir’s services were terminated vide Government Order No. 23-SKIMS of 2022 dated 20.08.2022, and upon culmination of investigation, the chargesheet was produced before the competent court for judicial adjudication, the statement added.

The Jammu and Kashmir Crime Branch and its Economic Offences Wing (EOW) are entrusted with the investigation of economic crimes and those involving skills and expertise of a higher level, so that frauds committed by employing and misusing technology are exposed and brought to justice.

Such crimes need single-minded attention and are time-consuming for the police personnel deployed on law and order maintenance and investigation of “routine crimes”.

–IANS

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