Lawyer, 2 others face case over forged birth certificates

GAIBANDHA, Aug 03: A court here has ordered the filing of a criminal case against three people, including a lawyer, over allegations of producing forged birth certificates to portray four adult accused as children, securing their bail, tampering with court order sheets and making an original case record disappear.

The order was issued by Mohammad Iftekhar Bin Aziz, judge of Gaibandha Children’s Court-2 and a senior district and sessions judge.

The bench assistant of the Gobindaganj Senior Judicial Magistrate’s Court has been directed to file the case with the relevant police station as the complainant.

Those named in the order are Sheikhfaul Islam Ripon, a lawyer of the Gaibandha District Bar Association; Hasan Ali, the lawyer’s assistant (muhuri); and police constable Abdus Sabur, who was serving as the Government Registered Officer (GRO) at the Gobindaganj Court at the time.

Lawyer Sheikhfaul Islam Ripon has been accused of preparing forged birth certificates for four adult accused in three separate cases and presenting them before the court as children in order to obtain bail.

The allegations also include the disappearance of an original court record and alterations to an order sheet containing a judge’s decision.

After the matter came to the court’s attention, the Children’s Court assigned SM Galib Hasan, senior judicial magistrate of the Gobindaganj Court, to investigate the allegations.

In his investigation report submitted on August 19, the magistrate said there was clear evidence of forgery and contempt of court. He described the alleged fraudulent activities as a “dark chapter” for the country’s judicial system.