Malda district police arrested a man on Friday night for producing an allegedly forged Scheduled Tribe certificate to get the job of a teacher in a high school. The arrest was made by a team from the Manikchak police station following a directive from Calcutta High Court.

Sources said Tapan Mandal, a resident of Tazpur village in Bhutni islet of the district, was arrested from Mathurapur, a locality near the bridge that connects the islet with the mainland. In January 2020, Mandal was recruited as a teacher in a high school in Cooch Behar.

However, his appointment was challenged in court by an official. It was alleged that Mandal got the job by producing a fake ST certificate. The administration subsequently initiated a probe and a complaint was registered with the police. During investigations, Mandal’s ST certificate was found to be fake.

Recently, Calcutta High Court asked the police to arrest Mandal. The accused, however, claimed that although he got the appointment letter, he did not join the job. However, the police said that, whether he joined the job or not, did not lessen the scope of his crime.

“This does not lessen his crime. He had obtained a forged certificate and had used that document to get a job,” said a police officer who is a part of the investigating team.