Shankar Ghosh, the BJP MLA of Siliguri and the chief whip of the party, has filed an application under the RTI Act, seeking details of the birth and death certificates issued from hospitals and panchayats located under the Kharibari block of
Darjeeling district.

The MLA’s RTI follows the recent arrests of two persons charged with issuing hundreds of fake death and birth certificates in lieu of cash at the Kharibari rural hospital. Kharibari is a block in the Siliguri subdivision of Darjeeling district.

“I have filed an RTI and have requested data on the birth and death certificates issued in the Kharibari block from July this year and onwards,” MLA Ghosh said.

“This is because the police have found that a racket, which was involved in issuing fake birth and death certificates, was active at the Kharibari rural hospital,” he said.

On October 17, the block medical officer of health (BMOH) of Kharibari filed a complaint with the police, alleging that some people issued fake certificates of birth and death for ₹10,000 each from
the hospital.

The police acted on the complaint and initiated a probe. Initially, they arrested Nabhajit Guha, who was associated with a Bangla Sahatyata Kendra in the block, and a few days later, Partha Saha, a data entry operator.

Saha had fled to Nepal to evade arrest.

A couple of days back, as Saha returned to India, intending to flee to Bihar, he
was arrested.

During the investigation, the police have found that Saha issued hundreds of fake certificates to people dwelling in different locations, including neighbouring states like Bihar, against money.

“We suspect there are some more people involved in the racket, as it is tough to believe that a data entry operator can carry out such a massive illegal practice in a state-run health establishment,” MLA Ghosh said.

“That is why I asked for the data through RTI, as records show that the rate at which such certificates were issued over the past few months is much higher than the usual rate of births and deaths in the area,” the MLA added.

In his letter, Ghosh has sought detailed information about the persons in whose name birth or death certificates were issued, which includes their names, address and the panchayat areas concerned, said sources.

The MLA had earlier expressed concern that fake birth certificates could legitimise infiltrators in the region.