Bombay High Court
Satish S/O Baburao Mendhe vs The Special Investigation Team, Thr. ... on 12 August, 2025
2025:BHC-NAG:7871
(1) Aba.447.2025
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
NAGPUR BENCH : NAGPUR
CRIMINAL APPLICATION (ABA) NO.447 OF 2025
Satish s/o Baburao Mendhe
Vs.
The Special Investigation Team, through Assistant Commissioner of
Police, Sadar, Nagpur and others
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Office Notes, Office Memoranda of Coram, Court's or Judge's orders
appearances, Court's orders of directions
and Registrar's orders
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Mr. Anil S. Mardikar, Senior Counsel a/b Mr. N. B. Kalwaghe, Counsel for
the applicant.
Mr. D. V. Chauhan, Public Prosecutor along with Mr. N. B. Jawade, APP for
State.
CORAM : URMILA JOSHI-PHALKE, J.
RESERVED ON : 29.07.2025
PRONOUNCED ON : 12.08.2025
1. Apprehending the arrest at the hands of
police in connection with Crime No.24/2025
registered with Cyber Police Station, Nagpur for the
offence punishable under Sections 66(c) of the
Information Technology Act, under Sections 318(4),
319(2), 336(3), 338, 340(1), 340(2) of the Bharatiya
Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, the applicant approached this
Court for grant of pre-arrest bail.
2. The crime is registered on the basis of
report lodged by Ravindra Patil, who is working as a
Junior Administrative Officer at the office of the
Deputy Director of Education, Nagpur Division since
01.09.2021. The said office had received complaints
(2) Aba.447.2025
about the creation of bogus Shalartha IDs and
withdrawal of salary on the basis of the same, by the
teachers of private unaided schools, which are not in
existence. Therefore, on 23.08.2024 a Committee to
examine these allegations was formed. During the
inquiry, it revealed that without there being creation
of Shalarth IDs by the office of the Deputy Director of
Education, Nagpur Division, the Shalarth IDs were
created, without the draft for the same, being
generated by the office of Deputy Director. A
detailed complaint was filed in which a list of 680
fake IDs were verified, in which the original orders
for creating the Shalarth IDs were not passed. Those
were created by using the online ID and password
dishonestly, since 20.03.2019. On the basis of the
said report, police have registered the crime against
the present applicant and the other co-accused.
3. Heard learned Senior Counsel for the
applicant, who submitted that applicant was working
from 01.01.2019 till 01.03.2020 as incharge Deputy
Director of Education, Nagpur. On 31.05.2020 he is
retired from service. He invited my attention towards
the Government Resolution of year 2012 and
submitted that as per the said Government
Resolution it was the duty of the headmaster to fill up
the details for creation of Shalarth IDs and
thereafter, it was forwarded to the office of the
Deputy Director of Education. As far as the present
applicant is concerned, he has no responsibility and
(3) Aba.447.2025
the entire responsibility was of the headmaster. He
invited my attention towards the observation of this
Court in Writ Petition No.8966/2021 [Amol
Baban Sangar Vs. The State of Maharashtra,
through its Secretary School Education and
Sports Department, Mantralaya, Mumbai and
others] decided on 21.02.2022 wherein this Court
has observed that in number of judgments, this Court
while reiterating the law declared by this Court
observed that once an approval is granted the
Education Officer to the appointment of school
employees, the Deputy Director, Education would
have no jurisdiction to refuse to enter the name of
school employees in the Shalarth system. He
submitted that this observation itself sufficiently
shows that the Deputy Director has no role to play.
Merely on suspicion, the applicant is arraigned as an
accused. He submitted that the applicant was
working on a post of incharge Deputy Director for a
very short period from 01.01.2019 till 01.03.2020.
The entire service career of the applicant was
unblemished and clean. During the tenure of the
applicant, he has not included the names of any
employees as much as 83 employees as alleged in
Shalarth Pranali by creating bogus Shalarth IDs and
draft and never signed such documents. The name
of the applicant is not mentioned in the FIR and the
entire prosecution story mainly revolves around the
Officer, who is the successor of the present applicant.
The successor of the present applicant Mr. Narad had
(4) Aba.447.2025
already been released on bail by the learned
Additional Sessions Judge. In the year 2012, the
Government of Maharashtra introduced a crucial
administrative reform by issuing a Government
Resolution mandating that all records, documents
and financial data related to school teachers,
including their appointments, transfers, salary
disbursement be maintained through online portal
known as 'Shalarth Pranali'. This step was taken to
ensure transparency, accountability and efficiency in
the functioning of Education Department. The
Shararth Pranali system is being introduced to
streamline the process of disbursement of the salary,
payment and other financial benefits to the teaching
and non-teaching. Thus, Government Resolution
dated 07.11.2012 authorized the headmaster for
data entry with respect to the credentials of the
teaching and non-teaching staffs and the present
applicant being Deputy Director had no role to play.
In view of that, his custodial interrogation is not
required and therefore, he be protected by granting
anticipatory bail.
4. Learned APP strongly opposed the said
application and submitted that the recruitment of the
teachers was not made since 2012, in the State of
Maharashtra. By Government Resolution dated
20.03.2019 the Deputy Director of Education was
given the authority to include the names of teaching
and non-teaching staff in Shalarth system. As per
(5) Aba.447.2025
the said Government Resolution, the concerned
Education Officers used to grant approval to the
employees and forward it to the office of the Deputy
Director of Education. The detailed information
regarding the said employee has to be filled in by the
concerned school/management and further forwarded
to the office of the Superintendent, Pay and Provident
Fund. The Superintendent office has been granted
power and duty to verify the said information and
thereafter approve the salary in respect of the
concerned employee. During the inquiry conducted
by various authorities, it was found that there were
huge irregularities in respect of grant of Shalarth IDs.
The process of Shalarth ID creation has started in the
tenure of the present applicant. The present
applicant was Deputy Director and when he was
holding the additional charge, 84 fake IDs were
created on the basis of which, these private aided
and partially aided teachers and non-teaching staff
had drawn the salaries. In the Nagpur Division, 680
fake Shalarth IDs were created and the amount
disbursed to the said employees is
Rs.145,88,31,698/- which includes the arrears of the
salary claimed by the teaching and non-teaching
staff. Thus, the role of the present applicant reveals
in the said crime, and therefore, the custodial
interrogation is required as the investigation is at a
crucial stage.
(6) Aba.447.2025
5. On hearing both sides and on perusal of
the investigation papers, the informant has alleged
that when he was working as a Junior Administration
Officer in the office of the Deputy Director of
Education, Nagpur Division, several complaints are
received about creation of bogus Shalarth IDs and
withdrawn of salary on the basis of the same by the
teachers of private unaided schools which are not in
existence therefore, the Committee was formed to
conduct inquiry. During the inquiry, it revealed that
without there being creation of Shalarth IDs by the
Office of Deputy Director of Education, the IDs were
created and generated from office of Deputy Director.
Total 680 fake IDs were created regarding which
original orders for creating the Shalarth IDs were not
passed. Those were created by using online IDs and
passwords since 20.03.2019. The applicant was
incharge Deputy Director of Education, Nagpur
Division since 01.01.2019 to 01.03.2020. During
which, 84 fake Shalarth IDs were created. There was
no recruitment process in the State of Maharashtra
for filling the post of teachers. By Government
Resolution dated 20.03.2019, the Deputy Director of
Education authorized to include the names of
teaching and non-teaching staff in Shalarth system.
As per Government Resolution dated 20.03.2019,
authority to include the names is given to the Deputy
Director of Education of Division/Divisional President
of Secondary and Higher Secondary. The procedure
(7) Aba.447.2025
laid down in the said Government Resolution is as
follows:
(i) After approval by the Education Officer or
Divisional President Secondary/Higher
Secondary, the concerned school will send
proposal to the Education Officer or Deputy
Director or Divisional President of
Secondary/Higher Secondary.
(ii) On receipt of proposal, the same is to be
verified by Deputy Director of
Education/Divisional President Secondary/Higher
Secondary and pass order to include the name of
the said employee in a Shalarth.
(iii) After order is passed by the Deputy Director/
Divisional President, Secondary and High
Secondary name of the concerned employee is
included in Shalarth Pranali.
(iv) After including the name of the employee in
Shalarth Pranali, draft is made available on the
login of the headmaster.
(v) The office of the headmaster will fill the
remaining information and forward the draft to
the Superintendent, Pay and Provident Fund
unit, Zilla Parishad.
(vi) Superintendent, Pay and Provident Fund unit
has to verify the information and sanction draft
thereafter the Shalarth ID is generated.
6. The communication of the Director of
Education shows list of 156 people permitted for the
period 31.03.2019 to 31.03.2025, which was called
and verified and it revealed that out of them without
(8) Aba.447.2025
any documents available with the Deputy Director of
Education on which schools their Shalarth IDs were
created. It further reveals that as per the
Government Resolution dated 07.11.2012, the duty
to prepare pay bill is of the office of the headmaster.
Pay bills are prepared in the name of employees
when there was no order to include his/her name in
the Shalarth. It is pertinent to note that present
applicant was Deputy Director of Education since
01.01.2019 to 01.03.2020 and was holding the
Additional Charge of Deputy Director of Education.
84 fake IDs were created on the basis of which these
private aided and partially aided teachers and
non-teaching staff had drawn the salaries. The ID
and password required for creating the Salarath ID
was given to the Deputy Director of Education
Division Nagpur and he is one of the responsible
Officers of the Education Department, so as to avoid
the irregularities and misappropriation if any. The
applicant by directing the co-accused, who were
working in his office had got created 84 fake IDs
without having any documents, due to which these
persons have continued not only draw their salaries,
but some of them have also drawn the arrears of
salary. Thus to create 84 Shalarath IDs, the
applicant was duty-bound to verify whether the
approval was granted by the Education Officer or not
and without verifying the same, the applicant had
created those Shalarth IDs. Due to the act of the
present applicant, huge loss was caused to the State
(9) Aba.447.2025
Exchequer. The applicant was the first Deputy
Director of Education in whose tenure, the creation of
Shalarth IDs had started. The physical papers of the
proposal on the basis of which these approvals are
granted and IDs are created are not available either
in the office of the Deputy Director of Education or in
the concerned schools. Admittedly, the investigation
is in the instant crime is at a very crucial stage and
considering the role of the present applicant, who
was responsible for creating the said IDs by verifying
whether the approval was granted or not. However,
the Shalarth IDs are created without verifying the
same and caused huge loss to the State Exchequer
and therefore, the custodial interrogation of the
present applicant is required for the investigation
purpose. In view of that, the application deserves to
be rejected. Accordingly, I proceed to pass following
order:
ORDER
The application is rejected.
(URMILA JOSHI-PHALKE, J.)
Sarkate
Signed by: Mr. A.R. Sarkate
Designation: PA To Honourable Judge
Date: 12/08/2025 15:20:52
