Ahmedabad: Gaekwad Haveli police on Thursday registered a cheating and forgery case against a city-based trader after an inquiry by the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) vigilance department revealed that a dealership certificate submitted during a tender process for the supply of copier paper was allegedly forged.
The complaint was filed on Thursday by Prakashchandra Makwana, assistant manager at AMC's Central Store in Jamalpur, following instructions from the civic body's vigilance department.
According to the First Information Report (FIR), AMC floated a tender on February 3, 2025, through its online procurement portal for the purchase of 12,000 packets of A4-size, 75 GSM copier paper for official use. As part of the technical bid requirements, bidders were required to submit supporting documents, including dealership authorisation certificates from manufacturers.
During the scrutiny of bids, Imprint Traders, owned by Kunal Shah of Naranpura, submitted a dealership authorisation certificate purportedly issued by Tamil Nadu Newsprint and Papers Limited (TNPL). The bidder subsequently emerged as the lowest bidder in the tender process.
However, officials at the central store later initiated verification of the dealership certificate by contacting the paper manufacturer through its official email channel. The company allegedly informed AMC that the authorisation letter submitted by Imprint Traders was not genuine.
Following the revelation, the matter was referred to AMC's central office and taken up by the vigilance department for a detailed inquiry. The vigilance probe reportedly concluded that the certificate was forged and recommended legal action.
The complaint states that a letter from the municipal commissioner's vigilance department directing legal proceedings was received by the central store in September 2025. However, the original tender file remained with the vigilance department during the inquiry, delaying the filing of the police complaint.
Police have alleged that the forged dealership certificate was submitted with the intention of securing a work order from AMC. Based on the complaint, Gaekwad Haveli police have registered a case against Kunal Jayantilal Shah and launched an investigation into the alleged forgery and attempted cheating of the civic body.
