COIMBATORE: A man has been booked for allegedly issuing a fake relationship certificate for a student seeking a medical seat.
The Variety Hall Road police in Coimbatore have filed charges against Vellingiri, aged around 50, of Madurai Veeran Kovil Street at Edayarpalayam in Coimbatore.
He had issued the certificate to his friend's son who was seeking medical admission under the NRI quota. The police said the certificate was issued to an 18-year-old from Ponnaiahrajapuram who had taken the NEET.
Vellingiri has been charged under various sections of the BNS Act, including 336(3) (forgery), 340(1) (forged document or electronic record used as genuine), and 318 (cheating). He has not been arrested till Friday evening. The certificate submitted by the student was found to be fraudulent during a verification conducted by the Medical Counselling Committee, which oversees admissions for medical studies, said sources.
"A key requirement is providing a relationship certificate to prove the link between the NRI sponsor and the candidate. The student approached his father's friend (suspect) to obtain the certificate and paid `10,000 in March 2025. The suspect gave a relationship certificate in April and the student used it to apply for the medical seat. However on July 24, Tamil Nadu Medical Selection committee cancelled the application stating that the relationship certificate produced by the student was a fake one," said police Inspector R Muthulakshmi.
The student filed a police complaint against Vellingiri after a verification by the Coimbatore South Tahsildar — the authority responsible for issuing such certificates - confirmed the document was fake, the Inspector added. "Submitting a fake relationship certificate for an NRI quota medical seat is a serious offence with severe consequences that could affect the student's education. Additionally, the forged document contained a government emblem. It appears a group may have been involved in this fraudulent activity, and the suspect might not have been fully aware of the forgery. We are currently investigating the case," the Inspector said.