Harni boat tragedy | School submitted fake proof: Kin of teachers

However, erstwhile the wage voucher receipts were submitted, Advocate Hitesh Gupta, representing the victims, said that the families of the 2 deceased teachers had noticed that their signatures connected the wage registry introduction were allegedly “forged” by the schoolhouse authorities. Gupta said that the families would question an FIR against the school.

The schoolhouse authorities, for their part, said the documents were genuine, adding it had “no crushed to taxable forged documents”. Twelve children and 2 teachers died aft the vessel they were travelling successful during a schoolhouse picnic capsized successful the Harni Lake Zone owed to alleged overcrowding connected January 18 past year.

According to Gupta, “As per our written submission that the compensation for 2 deceased teachers and 1 surviving teacher tin beryllium decided lone erstwhile their income proofs are available, the lawman collector had ordered the schoolhouse to taxable the documents. The schoolhouse has submitted pages from a register, which incorporate a antithetic magnitude (than the existent salary) and forged signatures of teachers; the signatures were verified with the PAN and passport documents and recovered to beryllium different. The families volition present record a constabulary complaint.”

Gupta contended that portion 1 of the deceased teachers, Falguni Patel, had been moving successful the schoolhouse for 35 years, she was allegedly paid a lesser magnitude than the 1 reflecting connected the vouchers (receipts).

Gupta said, “The vouchers that Falguni Patel was made to motion (while receiving the salary) were near blank but she was paid lone Rs 15,000 successful cash. Now that the schoolhouse has submitted the income proof, it has provided the forged registry introduction with a little amount.”

When contacted, Russy Wadia, Trustee and Managing Director of New Sunrise School, denied the allegations and said that the schoolhouse had “no crushed to” forge the documents arsenic the Gujarat HC had directed the Lake Zone contractors to wage compensation to the victims.

Wadia told The Indian Express, “The schoolhouse has nary crushed to taxable forged documents… The November 29 bid of the Gujarat HC intelligibly states that the compensation is to beryllium paid by M/s Kotia Projects… The documents we person provided astir the teachers’ salaries are perfectly genuine.”

Wadia further said, “We person records of the Provident Fund deposits to amusement successful bid to substantiate our submissions. In fact, the household of Falguni teacher has adjacent received the magnitude successful her PF connected the ground of the calculations that person been submitted. The families of some teachers besides collected their salaries for the period of January (2024) aft the tragedy, by signing the aforesaid vouchers.”

The adjacent proceeding successful the substance earlier the Deputy Collector volition beryllium held connected January 27.