Forgery Case Lawyers in Chennai | False Documents
BNS · Sections 336–340

Forgery: the offence that turns a document dispute into a prosecution

A forged signature on a sale deed, a fabricated agreement, an altered will. Forgery allegations sit at the centre of a great many property and commercial disputes in Chennai, and they are proved or disproved on expert evidence.

Quick answer

Forgery under Section 336 BNS is making a false document with intent to cause damage, support a claim, or commit fraud. Using a document you know to be forged is a separate offence under Section 340.

Both the maker and the user can be prosecuted, and in practice the user is often the easier target.

What has to be proved

A forgery prosecution requires a false document (made, signed, sealed or altered dishonestly so that it purports to be what it is not) together with the intent to cause damage or injury, to support a claim or title, or to commit fraud.

Merely being wrong is not forgery. An error in a document, or a dispute about what was agreed, is not the offence. The dishonest making of a document that lies about its own origin is.

Where forgery allegations actually arise

In our practice they cluster in a few recognisable places.

Property documents. Forged sale deeds, powers of attorney and no-objection letters used to transfer property that was never sold. These pair naturally with property fraud complaints.Wills and succession. Fabricated or altered wills produced after a death, contested alongside succession proceedings.Commercial documents. Fake invoices, backdated agreements, forged board resolutions and altered cheques.Certificates and identity. Forged educational, employment or government-issued documents.

Proof: why the expert evidence decides it

Handwriting and document examination is usually determinative. Specimen and admitted signatures are compared with the disputed one; ink, paper, impressions and sequencing may all be examined. Courts can direct specimens to be taken for comparison.

Practical advice for anyone alleging forgery: secure the original document, avoid handling or annotating it, and resist the temptation to obtain an informal private opinion first, the chain of custody matters, and a compromised original weakens even a strong case.

FAQs

Forgery cases: what people ask

Is a photocopy enough to prove forgery?+

It is a poor substitute. Expert comparison generally requires the original, and courts are cautious about findings of forgery based on copies alone. Locating and producing the original is usually the first step.

My signature was forged on a sale deed. What can I do?+

Two tracks run together: a criminal complaint for forgery and cheating, and a civil suit to declare the document void and cancel it. The civil suit is what actually protects the title, so it should not be delayed while the complaint proceeds.

How long does a forgery case take?+

Longer than most, because expert examination and the production of originals add stages. The civil proceedings that usually accompany it run on their own timeline.

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