Difference Between Forgery and Making a false document

The Crime of Forgery and Making a False Document are both serious crimes in India as per the Indian Penal Code 1860. Section 463 of the Indian Penal Code 1860 lays down the definition of Forgery and Section 464 of the Code deals with which addresses whether, per Section 463 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, a fraudulent document may be deemed to have been created with the purpose to commit forgery. The Indian Criminal Code, 1860, Section 465, stipulates the penalties for committing the crime of forgery.

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This Story also Contains

1. Meaning of Forgery
2. Essentials of Section 463
3. Essential Elements of Forgery
4. Various Provisions on Forgery Under IPC
5. Punishment for Forgery
6. Difference Between Forgery and Making a False Document
7. Case Laws on Forgery
8. Conclusion

Meaning of Forgery

The meaning of Forgery in Contract Law is making a false document to establish any fact that is in issue. The Crime of forgery is committed with the intent to defraud someone or establish something fake and false. A person to defraud someone or any Government authority by introducing any false document can be said to have committed the crime of forgery.

The Forgery is defined under Section 463 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 464 of the Indian Penal Code 1860 lays that whether a document produced is been established with an intent to defraud anyone or commit a crime. Section 465 of the Indian Penal Code deals with the punishment for Forgery and publishing a fake document.

Essentials of Section 463

Forgery is the making of a false document to defraud someone or to establish any fake fact. Section 463 deals with the crime of Forgery and lays the essential conditions to constitute the crime of forgery. The Essentials conditions laid down by the Section are given below-

• The document has to be fictitious or phoney.

• must harm the general public or any individual.

• dishonestly modifies the claim or title of someone.

• impacts a person's property title

• Make someone give up something they own.

• It is an offence for which there is no compounding or recognition.

Essential Elements of Forgery

Making of a False Document

The creation of a fraudulent document or electronic record is the first need for someone to be held accountable for the crime of forging. Section 464 gives the justification for the person's alleged document forgery. Put another way, Section 464 makes clear what exactly qualifies as forging a false document or electronic record. The document merely has the legal capacity to thwart the intended scam; publication or preparation in the name of an already-existing person is not a prerequisite.

In the case of, Mohd. Ibrahim v. State of Bihar

In this case, the Supreme Court held that A person is considered to have made a false document if they create or execute a document pretending to be someone else or have permission from someone else, alter or tamper with a document, obtain a document through deception, or obtain a document from someone who is not in control of their senses.

With the Intention To cause injury to another person

The second need is that the fraudulent document must have been intended to cause harm or Damage to the general public or any specific person. In Sanjiv Ratanappa v. Emperor, AIR 1932 Bom. 545, the court decided that if a police officer alters his diary in any way to indicate that he had not been keeping any particular person under observation, he will not be held accountable for the crime of forgery because there is no possibility of harm or damage to other people. Therefore, under Section 463 of the IPC, the person will not be held accountable if there is no loss or injury to any individual.

To Support any title or claim

If someone forges documents to support a claim they have legal ownership over can be held accountable under section 463.

With a Fraudulent Purpose

In certain situations, someone may be held accountable if they fabricate a document to defraud the other party. Fraud requires the intent to deceive to be considered.

To Cause harm to any person or Property

It does not matter if the property was there at the time the false document was prepared or if the person's goal was to cause harm or damage to another person by falsifying a document.

Various Provisions on Forgery Under IPC

Section 464- Making a False Document

Section 464 of the Indian Penal Code 1860 lays down the provisions for Making a false document with the intent to defraud someone or establish something fake and unlawful. A person is considered to have made a fraudulent document or false electronic record under this section.

when someone creates, signs, seals, executes or transmits any document with the right kind of evil intent. when someone modifies a document without the proper authorization. when a dishonest person attempts to persuade another person to carry out the same tasks on their behalf.

Section 466- Forgery of Public Document or Court Records

The falsification of court documents, public register entries, etc., is covered by Section 466 of the IPC. It states that anyone who falsifies a birth, marriage, baptism, or burial registry, or an electronic record that seems to be a court of justice record or action a power of attorney, a certificate or a document purporting to have been created by a public servant in his official capacity, or a register kept by a public servant in that capacity, shall be punished by imprisonment of either kind for a term that may not exceed seven years, as well as a fine. or the power to file a lawsuit, defend one, take any action related to it, or admit a verdict.

Section 467- Forgery of Will or Valuable Security, etc

The IPC's Section 467 addresses forgeries of valuable securities, wills, etc. According to this, anyone who forges a document posing as a will, valuable security, an authority to adopt a son, or one that enables someone else to create or transfer valuable security, receive its principal, interest, or dividends, or receive or deliver money is guilty of these offences. valuable security, movable property, or any document claiming to be an acquittance or receipt acknowledging the payment of money, or an acquittance or receipt for the delivery of any of these items, will be punished with a fine and/or life in prison, with the possibility of both types of imprisonment lasting up to ten years.

Section 468- Forgery Committed for Cheating

The IPC's Section 468 addresses forgeries committed with the intent to deceive. The law stipulates that anyone found guilty of forgery with the intent to use the falsified document or electronic record for fraudulent purposes faces up to seven years in jail of any kind in addition to a significant fine.

Section 469- Forgery to Harm Someone's Reputation

The IPC addresses forgeries with the intent to cause reputational injury in Section 469. It says that whoever commits forgery with the knowledge that it will be used for that purpose or with the intent for the forged document or electronic record to damage someone's reputation will be punished with up to three years in prison of any kind in addition to a fine.

Section 470 and 471- Forged Document

The categories of documents that fall under the purview of falsified documents are defined in Section 470, while Section 471 establishes the consequences for anybody who presents a fabricated document as authentic or legal. However, for someone to be held accountable under this clause, they must have used the allegedly falsified document and had knowledge of it or a reasonable suspicion that it was forged.

Section 472 and 473- Making of Counterfeits Seals or Plate, etc

A seal, plate, or other instrument that is made or counterfeited to forge valuable security, a will, or other papers listed in Section 467 of the Code is considered to be in the possession of the forger. A person found guilty in such a case faces life in prison or a sentence of up to seven years in jail together with a fine.

Section 474- Possession of a Forged Document

If someone has a forged document or electronic record and uses it dishonestly or fraudulently as a legitimate document, they will be punished under this clause. He will be punished by life in jail or a period of up to seven years in prison and a fine.

Section 475 and 476- Counterfeiting any Material

A person will be held accountable under section 475 if they counterfeit any material or equipment with the intent of using it to authenticate any document that is covered by section 467 of the same code. If someone counterfeits something to use it to authenticate a document that isn't protected by section 467 of the same code, they will be held liable under section 476 of the same code.

Punishment for Forgery

The sanctions for forgeries are covered by Section 465 of the IPC. It states that the maximum penalty for anyone found guilty of forgery is two years in any type of jail, a fine, or both.

Difference Between Forgery and Making a False Document

• The main difference between forging and cheating is that oral deception is involved in forging, whereas written documents are involved in forgeries.

• The essential element of the crime of forgery is creating a false document to harm another person.

• It may only be assumed that the concept of forgery found in Sections 463 and 464 of the Indian Criminal Code, 1860, applies to forgeries that include the components of dishonesty and harm.

• The production of false documents is the core of forgery. Any documents or portions of documents bearing another person's seal or signature, even when the signer is aware that the document is not theirs and that they were not given permission to do so, are considered false. Put differently, any document that has the name or seal of someone who did not truly sign or seal it is fake, or at least a portion of it is.

• Executing a sale deed under false pretences of being the owner or claiming to be falsely authorized or permitted by the owner to execute the deed on the owner's behalf is fundamentally different from the execution of a sale deed by someone asserting that the property conveyed is his own. The latter is an example of forgery, not the former.

• When someone signs a document transferring property and claiming it as his, two things happen. The first issue is that he sincerely feels that the property is his. The second is that he can fraudulently or dishonestly portray anything as his own even while he is aware that it is not. The notion of forgery does not apply in these two situations.

Case Laws on Forgery

In the case of, State of Orissa v. Rabindra Nath Sahu

In this case, The Orissa High Court ruled that while the accused need not have committed the crime of cheating to be charged under Section 468, it is a material fact that the accused must have committed forgery intending to use the forged document for fraudulent purposes. If the accused utilised the falsified document to commit cheating, he may be held accountable under Section 468 in addition to the cheating offence.

In the case of Kishan Lal v. State

In this case, The accused signed the postal acknowledgement in the name of the original payee after claiming to be the payee when he wasn't and accepted the money from the postman. The court determined that the accused is accountable for the offence under section 467 of the IPC.

Conclusion

This article is all about the offence of Forgery and Creating a False Document. Section 463 of the Indian Penal Code 1860 deals with the offence of Forgery and 465 defines the criteria under which a false document can be termed as forgery. Section 465 of the IPC deals with the punishment of Forgery. Forgery according to the code means the creation of a document to defraud something or to establish something false and unlawful. The article consists of the various provisions of Forgery given under IPC and the difference between Forgery and Making a False Document.