Pune Professor Forges Letter To Claim Prestigious Science Award; Arrested

Pune Professor Arrested for Falsifying Prestigious Science Award Letter

He had fabricated the document to advance his scientific career, according to police officials. (Representational)

Pune:

Police reported on Monday that a chemistry professor from a college in Pune has been apprehended for allegedly fabricating a letter that falsely claimed he was selected for a prestigious science award established by the Ministry of Science and Technology.

Virendra Singh Yadav, who serves as an associate professor at a Wagholi-based college, was taken into custody on Sunday and charged under sections 318(4) (cheating), 336 (forgery), and other applicable provisions of the Bharashtiya Nyaya Sanhita, according to an official statement.

The National Chemical Laboratory (NCL) security officer filed a complaint stating that the ministry had recently discovered a letter indicating that associate professor Yadav from a Wagholi college had been chosen for the 2025-26 Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award.

It should be noted that in 2022, the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award was renamed as Rashtriya Vigyan Puraskar, which stands as one of the highest honors in science, technology, and innovation fields.

"CSIR-HRDC officials, during their examination, identified a counterfeit signature of the Minister of State (Independent Charge) of Science & Technology on the document. Further investigation revealed that no selections had been made for this scientific award for 2025-26," the complaint detailed.

Following instructions to verify the situation, NCL dispatched a team to meet Yadav at his college. Their inquiry determined that he had allegedly falsified the letter to secure a more prestigious position in the scientific community, police reported.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone 4) Somay Munde stated, "Yadav created a fraudulent letter asserting his selection for the award, and he also forged the signature of Minister of State (Independent Charge) of Science & Technology Jitendra Singh."

"The investigation is ongoing. We are also examining whether additional individuals might be involved in this case," he added.

Sub-inspector Sandip Karpe, who is handling the investigation, confirmed that Yadav has been placed in police custody until September 26.