Man sent mail to the Iran Embassy in Delhi on forged Rashtrapati Bhavan letterhead trying to secure free medical treatment

Letter from the President?

Man sent mail to the Iran Embassy in Delhi on forged Rashtrapati Bhavan letterhead trying to secure free medical treatment

English may well be a funny language but no one in the Rashtrapati Bhavan would consider this a laughing matter. An unidentified Muslim man forged the letterhead of the President's House and wrote a letter, posing as Pratibha Patil's joint secretary, to the Iran Embassy in New Delhi.

The letter recommended the man for free medical treatment. According to a source in the police, the man thought since he was a Muslim he would anyway get preferential care from the Iran Embassy.

However people at the embassy noticed that 'Rashtrapati Bhavan' had been misspelt on the letterhead and brought the matter to the notice of the President's secretary. The Rashtrapati Bhavan informed the embassy that they had recommended no one and had no knowledge of the letter. Since it had become evident that it was a case of cheating, the Delhi police was informed about the incident.

The accused is still on the run and the police are trying their best to nab him.

The Iran Embassy has also filed a case with the Diplomatic police after it contacted the DCP at Rashtrapati Bhavan, H M Meena, to look into the matter. Meena, after receiving the letter, informed the additional DCP, Special Cell, Shibesh Singh in this respect and also filed an FIR, a copy of which is available with MiD DAY.
Speaking to this reporter the Joint Commissioner (Rashtrapati Bhavan), Aditya Arya confirmed the incident. He said that Special Cell and New Delhi district police were contacted.

However, DCP Meena said that he wasn't aware of the incident.
"If New Delhi district police is looking into the matter how can I comment on anything in the matter," said Meena.

A senior police officer posted with the New Delhi district said that on June 15, DCP Rashtrapati Bhavan sent a copy of the letter to the DCP Special Cell.u00a0

"Iran Embassy officials first sent the letter to the secretary to the President. And President's office forwarded the letter to DCP Meena. Iran Embassy informed the President's office that the name of Rashtrapati Bhavan was misused by someone seeking personal favours and so the matter should be investigated seriously," said a senior police officer.

The police officer said that the accused has not been identified so far but he was a Muslim. The perpetrator was ill and did not have money for availing medical care and so he hatched a plan to get help from the Iran Embassy.

"Prima Facie investigation reveals that being a Muslim he thought that the embassy would help him. He then prepared a fake letterhead of the President's House. The letter shows that he has been recommended by the Joint Secretary to the President. However, the accused could not spell 'Rashtrapati Bhavan' correctly. Iran Embassy officials noticed this and immediately contacted the President's office," the officer said.

The Delhi police said that the real letter is still in the possession of the Iran Embassy. They have asked the embassy to give them all the documents regarding the case. Police said they have also asked for a letterhead from the Rashtrapati Bhavan to compare the two.

"The accused has not been arrested so far. We have booked him under section 468 of IPC (forgery for purpose of cheating). We only know that he is a Muslim and is a Delhi resident. He did all this just to get preferential treatment. But as he forged a letter in the name of the Rashtrapati Bhavan, the matter is serious," the police officer added.