Ahmedabad: One Utpal Ambukumar Patel of Shardanagar Society Paldi, a practicing doctor, has been sentenced to three years in jail for forging his Class 12 marksheet to secure MBBS admission 40 years ago.

In 1980, Patel’s original score in class 12 which was 49% left him ineligible for medical admission. Later, he forged a mark sheet falsely claiming a score of 68% to gain admission to BJ Medical College. The Gujarat Secondary Education Board exposed the fraud, leading to charges in 2014. Patel, now 60, was convicted of cheating and forgery but acquitted of theft. The judge sentenced him to three years in jail and a Rs 30,000 fine, canceling his bail bonds.

Patel’s defence argued against a jail term, citing the Probation of Offenders Act for leniency. They highlighted Patel’s role as a medical practitioner running a clinic in the city, emphasising that the offence occurred when he was just 17. At 60, with a family, a jail term was deemed inappropriate.

The prosecution sought the maximum punishment of seven years, arguing that leniency could set a precedent for similar offences in the medical profession. The judge sentenced Patel to three years in prison, along with a Rs 30,000 fine, noting that Patel, despite being ineligible for medical admission, secured another individual’s MBBS seat using the fabricated marksheet. Describing the act as against society, the court emphasised its duty to prevent the repetition of such offences and cancelled Patel’s bail bonds. DeshGujarat