145;Humble146; language gives away Cong activist146;s forgery bid

Chambal Division Commissioner S D Agrawal told The Indian Express that the letterheads appeared genuine but the 8220;humble8221; language made him suspicious. Some 8220;recommendations8221; had also reached him directly.

When the government staff got in touch with the offices of these two Union ministers they were told that such letters had never been issued. A case under Sections 420 and 468 of the IPC has been registered against Shyamveer Prajapati, general secretary of Prajapati Samaj, in the Kotwali Police Station of Morena district, Police Inspector Praveen Asthana said.

Morena-based Congress leaders Dinesh Gurjar and Bhagwandas Tomar admitted that Prajapati was close to the party and attended all its functions but claimed he was not a primary member. 8220;We don8217;t let him enter the party office now,8221; Gurjar said. Prajapati, a middleman, threw his weight around citing his proximity with the Congress party.

Since the incident, authorities have stopped processing more than 600 recommendations made by leaders of all hues in Madhya Pradesh.

The police believe the letterheads are generally genuine as gun seekers or middlemen somehow lay their hands on blank letterheads but forge signatures. Sources, however, told this paper that a few licences could have been issued in the past based on 8220;recommendations8221; from Union ministers. Last month, BJP MLA from Sumavali in Morena wrote to state Home Minister Himmat Kothari alleging that applications for gun licences had been made on his forged letterheads.