BENGALURU: After a departmental probe, the Karnataka Transport Department has filed a first information report (FIR) against an official of the Bengaluru Central Regional Transport Office (RTO) for allegedly issuing fitness certificates (FCs) to over 10,210 vehicles, largely from Gujarat, Maharashtra and Kerala, without inspection. The FIR also names vehicle owners as accused.
The FIR was registered at the HSR Layout Police Station following allegations on February 28 by Regional Transport Officer Deepak L after directions from senior officials. The action follows a complaint by advocate S Nataraj Sharma to the transport commissioner.
A departmental inquiry was ordered and a joint transport commissioner conducted an inspection on February 19, examining data available on the Vahan portal. Preliminary findings revealed that retired senior motor vehicle inspector Nisar Ahmed issued Form 38A certificates between August 1, 2025 and January 31, 2026.
The Gujarat transport commissioner’s office had earlier flagged the issuance of certificates to 41 Gujarat-registered vehicles through email, following which Nisar Ahmed was suspended on January 20. He retired on January 31.
Based on the inquiry report submitted on February 27, the transport commissioner directed registration of a criminal case. The police have registered a case against Nisar Ahmed and the vehicle owners under criminal breach of trust and cheating under BNS.