A Srinagar court has sentenced Muhammad Shafi Banday, former Managing Director of the J&K Cooperative Central Land Development Bank Ltd, to two years of simple imprisonment and imposed a fine of ₹5,000 for forging his date of birth to unlawfully extend his tenure in service.
The order was delivered by City Judge Srinagar, Abdul Bari, who found Banday guilty of manipulating his official records to remain in office beyond the permissible retirement age.
According to the prosecution, the case dates back to October 15, 2012, when the Crime Branch Kashmir received a complaint alleging that Banday had falsified his date of birth — recording it as September 1, 1939 instead of 1934 — by producing a forged birth certificate.
A subsequent departmental verification confirmed the manipulation through multiple official correspondences. Investigators later established that Banday had overstayed in service for over seven years, deriving undue financial benefits and causing a loss to the state exchequer.
Following the inquiry, the Crime Branch Srinagar registered FIR No. 49/2007, charging Banday under several sections of the Penal Code for forgery, cheating, and using a forged document as genuine.
After a detailed investigation, a chargesheet was filed and the court formally framed charges on August 26, 2013. Upon completion of the trial, Banday was found guilty on all counts and sentenced accordingly.
