Delhi Gardener Arrested for Forging CM Office Documents to Scam Vulnerable Patients Seeking Medical Treatment

A contractual MCD employee was apprehended by police for creating counterfeit letterheads from the Delhi Chief Minister's Office. The suspect deceived underprivileged patients by falsely offering free medical care in private hospitals under the Economically Weaker Section quota, officials announced Sunday.

The perpetrator, identified as 27-year-old Sonu from Tagore Garden, was detained on October 30 following an official complaint submitted by the Chief Minister's Office.

According to authorities, the fraudulent activity was discovered when staff at Delhi's Maharaja Agrasen Hospital contacted the CMO to verify a letter they had received. This document supposedly recommended complimentary treatment for a patient named Shyam Shankar through the EWS program.

"The correspondence contained forged signatures of senior CMO officials. Hospital staff became suspicious due to spelling errors, inconsistent typography, and formatting issues," stated Deputy Commissioner of Police (North) Raja Banthia.

The DCP further explained that the hospital also received a telephone call from an individual claiming to be Balbir Singh Rathee from the CM Office, who instructed them to proceed with providing treatment.

Finding these communications questionable, hospital administration reached out to the Chief Minister's Office for authentication.

Subsequently, the Officer on Special Duty to the Chief Minister, SC Vashishtha, filed a complaint at Civil Lines police station, alleging fraudulent preparation of documents using the official CM's office letterhead.

Authorities registered a case and launched an investigation. During questioning, patient Shyam Shankar revealed that his wife Anju had obtained the letter through someone named Sonu.

Investigators traced the caller's mobile numbers to Karol Bagh area, where they discovered Sonu was employed as a contractual gardener at the Municipal Corporation of Delhi office.

When police conducted a raid on October 29, the suspect initially escaped, abandoning his bag and motorcycle. The team later located him in Tagore Garden and arrested him the following day. His mobile phone, containing records of impersonation calls and additional active numbers, was confiscated.

"During interrogation, Sonu confessed to discovering an authentic CM Office letter in the MCD's mail section several months earlier, which inspired him to produce counterfeit copies for financial gain," the DCP revealed.

His modus operandi involved targeting financially disadvantaged patients outside private medical facilities. He would promise them complimentary admission under the EWS category through the Chief Minister's Office, charging Rs 5,000 per case.

The accused admitted to utilizing translation applications to insert patient information onto fraudulent letters and impersonating an official named Balbir Singh Rathee when contacting hospital administrators to expedite approvals.

Sonu also disclosed using a motorcycle with falsified registration plates to avoid detection.

Items seized from his possession included a mobile phone with dual SIM cards, multiple forged CM Office documents, an original letterhead bearing an Officer-In-Charge's signature, a counterfeit MCD identification card, a fake Haryana government ID, and a motorcycle with altered number plates.

Originally from Badli in Jhajjar, Haryana, Sonu abandoned his education following his father's death in 1999. Before relocating to Delhi in 2023, he had worked as a security guard and gardener in Bahadurgarh for five years.

He currently resides with his wife and son in rented accommodation in Tagore Garden. The investigation continues to identify potential accomplices.