Crime
CBI books its Deputy Legal Advisor for forging annual performance appraisal report
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) booked its Deputy Legal Advisor for the Vyapam case, Beena Raizada for forging her annual performance appraisal report (APAR) and charged her with cheating, forgery and use of bogus documents.
Indian Express, citing sources, stated that during the scrutiny of her APAR, which she had personally submitted with the headquarters in Delhi, it was revealed that she had been appraised even for the period that she was absent from office for 90 days.
Raizada’s performance has not bee rated very well by her superiors for 2014, 2015 and 2016. However, in the APAR, she had allegedly rated herself as ‘excellent’.
She allegedly even signed the documents on behalf of the head of department.
Due to these contradictory statements in the APAR, a preliminary inquiry was carried out which was converted into an FIR on November 12.
In January last year, she joined Anti Corruption Unit VI in Delhi, which is probing the Vyapam case. Raizada had personally submitted her APARs for 2014, 2015 and 2016 along with assessment notes with CBI’s Department of Prosecution in Delhi. They all had the signature of Patna Head of Branch DIG V K Singh. All the assessment notes “certified the performance of Ms Beena Raizada as ‘Excellent’”, according to the FIR.
Upon suspicion, the documents were sent for verification. “During enquiry, Sh. V.K. Singh… stated that the signatures on the said Assessment Notes resemble his signatures but he had not made those signatures. He further stated that Ms. Beena Raizada was not on duty for the period of 90 days during 2014 and 2015 and therefore, there was no question of writing an assessment report in her favour. He stated that similarly there was no question of writing assessment report in her favour for the period 2016 since he was repatriated in 2015 to parent department,” the FIR said.
Probe also found that in the relevant period, Raizada was working the Joint Director (IG rank) of Patna Zone and so DIG V K Singh “could not have issued the assessment notes”.
“Since, the APARs along with the said three purported Assessment Notes were submitted by Ms Beena Raizada herself, it is prima facie established that the signatures of Sh. V.K. Singh on the said Assessment Notes are forged with the intention to get her APARs processed favourably,” the FIR said.
