Jorhat: A shocking recruitment scam involving forged certificates has come to light in Assam, raising serious concerns about the loss of employment opportunities for genuine Assamese youth.

According to reports, several candidates from outside Assam allegedly secured jobs in various Central Government departments by using fake documents claiming them to be permanent residents of Assam. The forged documents reportedly include Permanent Resident Certificates (PRCs), Caste Certificates, and Income Certificates.

The scam recently surfaced in Jorhat and has drawn attention to Naosholia village, where forged resident certificates were allegedly created and used by candidates from other states. Investigations have revealed that numerous individuals obtained Central Government jobs under Assam's quota by fraudulently presenting these fake documents.

The fraudulent activities were reportedly detected through the efforts of the Additional Deputy Commissioner of Jorhat, Pankaj Bora. The revelations have stunned officials and the public alike.

Sources indicate that fake Permanent Resident Certificates of Naosholia village, along with forged Caste and Income Certificates, were used to secure employment in organisations such as the CRPF, Assam Rifles, and CISF. All the individuals under scrutiny allegedly used fake residential credentials linked to Naosholia village.

Further investigation has revealed that the Caste and Income Certificates submitted by these candidates were originally issued in the names of different individuals from Assam. The fraud was uncovered through verification of certificate numbers and related records.

Authorities suspect that the scam may not be limited to Jorhat alone. There are growing concerns that similar fraudulent practices may have occurred in other parts of Assam, allowing candidates from outside the state to deprive eligible Assamese youth of Central Government employment opportunities.

One of the biggest questions emerging from the investigation is who facilitated the issuance and use of these forged Assam documents. There is also speculation regarding the possible involvement of influential individuals or organised networks behind the racket.

Investigators are examining whether the choice of Naosholia village was linked to its proximity to establishments where personnel from various Central Government security forces are employed and often reside in rented accommodations. It is suspected that the perpetrators may have exploited this connection while creating the forged residential documents.

The exposure of this alleged scam has sparked widespread concern across Assam. Many have demanded a thorough investigation and strict action against those involved, arguing that such fraudulent activities not only undermine the integrity of the recruitment process but also rob deserving Assamese youth of their rightful employment opportunities.

Additional deputy commissioner of Jorhat, Pankaj Bora, said to ANI "Actually, we received requests from certain CRPF units, the Director General's Office of Assam Rifles in Shillong, and a CISF unit at NTPC Dadri regarding the verification of PRC (Permanent residential certificate) and other certificates submitted by some of their newly recruited personnel.

According to the documents submitted, these recruits claimed to be residents of Jorhat district. Accordingly, the documents were forwarded to us for verification. However, during the verification process, we found that the documents were forged."

"Upon examining the certificate numbers, we discovered that those numbers actually corresponded to genuine income certificates that had been issued to other individuals, some from Jorhat district and others from different districts of Assam. However, the certificates produced before the recruiting authorities were entirely different from the original documents linked to those certificate numbers," he added.

Bora detailed the case, saying, "Further analysis revealed that no applications corresponding to the documents produced by these individuals had ever been received or processed under those certificate numbers. Based on these findings, we concluded that the certificates were completely forged and fabricated, apparently with the intention of securing recruitment into government services or possibly for other unlawful purposes. At present, we have established that these individuals do not belong to the places mentioned in their Police Station Reports. Therefore, the documents submitted by them are clearly fake. Furthermore, the existence of these individuals at the addresses provided in the documents could not be verified or traced."

"As such, we cannot conclusively determine where they are originally from. However, some of the supporting documents received from the recruiting authorities indicate that while the individuals claimed to be residents of Assam, they had appeared for their High School (Madhyamik) and other preliminary examinations in Uttar Pradesh. It is possible that they belong to Uttar Pradesh or some other state and obtained forged certificates from Assam in order to falsely project themselves as permanent residents of the state. At this stage, it would be difficult for us to make any definitive statement regarding their actual place of origin. However, one common factor that has emerged in all the forged documents is the repeated mention of Naosholia village," he added.

An additional deputy commissioner further said, "We have observed that Naosholia village and its surrounding areas are located close to several Central Government establishments, including security force installations. A number of personnel associated with these establishments reside in the area, either in government accommodations or in rented houses within the village. This could explain why the name of Naosholia village appears repeatedly in the forged certificates. In view of these findings, we lodged an FIR on 27 May 2026. The case has been registered at Jorhat Sadar Police Station."

"The Investigating Officer has already commenced the investigation. We have also provided additional inputs to assist the inquiry. The investigation is currently focused on determining whether an organised criminal network or recruitment racket is operating in the area and facilitating the preparation and use of such forged documents," he concluded.

A case has been registered in Jorhat Sadar Police Station under section 3(5), 318(2), 319(2), 336, 336(2), 338, 340, 61(2) of BNS. The government is urged to take immediate and stringent measures to identify the culprits, cancel fraudulent appointments, and prevent similar incidents in the future.

This report was published from a syndicated wire feed. Apart from the headline, the EdexLive Desk has not edited the copy.