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Shailesh Patel (Engineer)     07 June 2021

Loss of evidence

One of our Govt. office employee has lose Govt record i.e.Service books of 10 employees knowingly /unknowingly during movement from one office to other office.

Service book is an important office records for a Govt. employee contains total career data/information of all 10 employees since their inception in Govt. Job.

So we have initiated departmental inquiry against this employee. During preliminary departmental inquiry we found he has destroyed one of the vital evidence of office record by tearing page  i.e. book recording movement of  service book movement from one office to another office to save himself from punishment.

So we now plan to file a police complaint for destroying this evidence and office record. So please guide which IPC section will help us to nail the culprit to fix his responsibility for (1) destroying evidence of office record and (2) loss of Important Office Record.i.e.10 service books. and how police will help us.



Learning

 9 Replies

nikita jain   07 June 2021

under section 204 of IPC you can file for destruction of evidence and can also charge him with sec 425 that is mischief

Dr J C Vashista (Advocate)     07 June 2021

File a police complaint without mentioning provision of law.

What about departmental enquiry proceedings?

Shailesh Patel (Engineer)     07 June 2021

Preliminary Information Report came  for Loss of service book. Detailed Departmental Inquiry, the next step, is  under process and during scrutiny of statement,its  noticed the destruction of evidence. One name is Surfaced in the preliminary Report for lose of service book.

Should we file the Police complaint based on with this name?

Should we file for both points.1 Destruction of evidence and 2.Lose of service book?

G.L.N. Prasad (Retired employee.)     07 June 2021

One can file only a complaint with jurisdictional PS at a place where the crime was suspected to have been taken place and the complaint should state chronological facts and the suspects can be named with a copy of such report.  After a preliminary inquiry, the Investigating officer provides a copy of the FIR and it must be informed in the first line itself about the IPC sections.  The authorized officer can only state the loss of service book, (Date, Place, time), inquiry and findings of the inquiy, then noticing the destruction of evidence. 

Shailesh Patel (Engineer)     07 June 2021

Thanks a lot sir for providing me a very useful guidance on the matter.

1 Like

Sankaranarayanan (Advocate)     07 June 2021

I do stand with experts point.

P. Venu (Advocate)     07 June 2021

Given the scanty nature of evidence, criminal action may not serve much purpose. Instead, Departmental action is the best and only option.

Far more important is the reconstruction of records. Trust action is this regard is in progress.

T. Kalaiselvan, Advocate (Advocate)     07 June 2021

If your department head found that the delinquent employee had done this offence intentionally then besides  departmental inquiry in progress, the department can lodge a criminal complaint against the suspected employee for destroying the official records intentionally and other related offences. The complaint may be elaborate about the commission of various offences, you need not mention any particular section of law, the police will take care of sections or provisions of law by which proper legal action can be initiated against the accused/employee. 

Dr J C Vashista (Advocate)     08 June 2021

If it has been established that the delinquent official has destroyed service book / any other official document for which s/he was responsible to maintain and custody, complaint should be lodged besides departmental inquiry.


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