PANAJI
A man walked into the Commissioner of Excise’s office on Thursday claiming he had been appointed to the post, signed official papers and nearly passed himself off as the department’s new chief until an alert staff raised the alarm.
What initially appeared to be a brazen case of impersonation, however, took an unexpected turn when police discovered that the man himself was allegedly the victim of a Rs 27 lakh job-for-cash scam. The man, identified as Manoj Talekar, entered the office unannounced and produced a government order claiming that former Excise Commissioner and IAS officer Ashvin Chandru had formally handed over charge of Commissioner of Excise and Director of Administration to him, with the approval of the Governor of Goa. Chandru was recently transferred in a bureaucratic reshuffle, leaving the post of Excise Commissioner vacant.
The document, printed on Government of Goa letterhead and bearing the State emblem and a signature purportedly belonging to Chandru, was subsequently found to be forged. “The undersigned is pleased to hand over the formal charge of the Commissioner of Excise and Director Administration against my name to be formally transferred and handed over to Mr Manoj Anil Talekar (GCS) w.e.f. 29/09/2026. This order is with the approval from the Hon Governor of Goa,” the forged letter stated. Talekar, relying on the document, proceeded to act as the Commissioner. He allegedly signed official documents before an employee noticed something amiss and alerted other staff and the police.Police intervened and Talekar was taken to the Panaji police station for questioning. The documents he had produced, along with the papers he had allegedly signed, were seized for probe. The inquiry, however, soon opened a far more serious trail.
Police sources told The Goan that Talekar told investigators he had allegedly paid around Rs 27 lakh in several instalments to Ajit Shankwalkar, a wine shop owner, who had promised him a government job in the Excise Department. Shankwalkar allegedly later handed him the forged appointment document, which Talekar apparently believed was genuine.Sources added that Shankwalkar has been absconding since the incident and teams have been formed to trace him. An FIR was being registered against him in connection with the alleged job scam. The investigation has also opened another alleged financial fraud. Police sources said Talekar had allegedly paid around Rs 80 lakh for a Comunidade plot after being persuaded to do so, but the land was never handed over. A separate case is expected to be registered in connection with the transaction. The alleged fraud may extend further as Talekar’s family also allegedly paid around Rs 25 lakh in the hope of securing an accountant’s job in the Accounts Department for his sister. She, too, was never given the promised job.
The police are now examining the financial transactions and documents linked to the alleged recruitment racket and the comunidade deal.
Talekar’s father, police sources said, had served in the Goa Police and is now retired.
