Overview: FORGERY LAWS IN INDIA

Forgery is when a person makes a false document in order to use it or making someone believe that the document is genuine. Under Indian law, forgery is defined under Section 463 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 "Section 463- Forgery - “Whoever makes any false documents or false electronic record or part of a document or electronic record, with intent to cause damage or injury, to the public or to any person, or to support any claim or title, or to cause any person to part with property, or to enter into any express or implied contract, or with intent to commit fraud or that fraud may be committed, commits forgery.”

Not all documents which are forged are considered to be an offence of forgery. To constitute forgery the false writing must have a legal efficacy as well as significance. The documents which have a legal repercussions are-

- Deeds

- Prescriptions

- Wills

- Medical documents

- Government documents

- Stock papers

- Property papers

- Patents

INGREDIENTS OF FORGERY-

1) Making a false document or an electronic record;

2) The making of the document should be done with the intention of causing Fraud or damage to the public or any private person or his property.

In the case T.N Rugmani v. C. Menon, the Supreme Court held that the if an application is made in someone else’s name without the intention to defraud or causing any damage or harm to any person, then this does not amount to forgery.

In case Dr Vimla v. Delhi administration, an insurance company had registered a case of forgery against Dr Vimla. The motor car which was purchased by Dr Vimla was purchased by her in the name of her daughter Nalini as well as the insurance policy was transferred in her name. Nalini was 6 months old at that time. Dr Vimla had also received compensation for claims and had signed on the forms as well as the receipts of the insurance as Nalini. In view of these facts, the Supreme court observed that Dr Vimla had not obtained any pecuniary benefit nor had the company suffered any loss because of Nalini’s name having been signed by her mother on the forms and the receipts. Thus, the court held that if there was no pecuniary or other kind of gain to the accused, he cannot be convicted of the offence of forgery, and hence, Dr vimla was not held guilty of the offence of forgery under section 467 and 468 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860.

TYPES OF FORGERY-

- Signature forgery- it is the act of replacing one’s signature. Many methods such as tracing are used to do so.

- Art forgery – the forgery of an art by any artist to pass it as a genuine creation of the person. It can amount to serious charges if the proceeds from the sale is a very big amount.

- Prescription forgery – forging the signature of a doctor or the whole prescription in order to gain prescription drugs from the medical store which are not sold to a common man without prescription. Since this has become a widespread problem, the stores have now started to contact the doctors before giving out any of the prescription drugs.

- Governmental / Federal forgery- it is the forging of government papers or documents or any kind of identification which may lead the other person to believe that the demand made by the person is legit.

PUNISHMENT FOR FORGERY-

Under Section 465 of the Indian Penal Code, the punishment for the offence of forgery has been prescribed-

1) Imprisonment to the extent of 2 years;

2) Or fine;

3) Or both.

FORGED DOCUMENT AND ITS USE

A forged document is defined under Section 470 and the liability of a person who uses a forged document with fraudulent intention is prescribed under section 471.

Section 470- Forged [document or electronic record]—A false [document or electronic record] made wholly or in part by forgery is designated “a forged [document or electronic record]”.

This section clarifies that every false document is not forged document until and unless it is made by a forged intention.

Essential ingredients to constitute an offence under Section 471-

1) Fraudulent use of the document

2) The person using it must have a reason to believe that the document is forged.

In case Jagannanth Prasad v. State, it was held by the Court that it is immaterial for the conviction of the accused under Section 471 that they had produced the document voluntarily or involuntarily without disclosing it to the Court that he knows or believes that the document produced by him/her is a forged document.

FAQs

1) Is forgery and plagiarism same?

Ans. No. they are similar in nature but are vastly different.

[The author, Rishi Nandy is a 2nd year law student at Vivekanand Institute of Professional Studies, GGSIPU]

• T.N Rugmani v. C. Menon, AIR 1991 SC 983
• Dr Vimla v. Delhi administration, AIR 1963 SC 1572
• Jagannanth Prasad v. State, (1963) 1 SCC 147