Meerut, Jun 28: To look taller in physical test for recruitment as sub-inspector, a 24-year-old man of Bulandshahr caught applying henna to his hair.  Ankit Kumar applied henna to his hair and combed it in such a way as to create the illusion of being one centimetre taller than his actual height.

Ankit was one centimetre short of 168 cm - the height required to pass the physical test for recruitment as sub-inspector. He used medicines to gain height but it turned futile. When all his efforts went in vain, Ankit turned to henna. However, he was caught during physical test at Police Lines in Meerut.

"When we were testing Kumar's height with our machine - in which a metallic plate touches the head of an individual whose height is being measured - a gap was noticed between his hair and the plate, which otherwise does not happen," Meerut superintendent of police (traffic) Sanjeev Bajpai told TOI.

"That is when we became doubtful and checked his hair to see what the matter was," Bajpai added. Police officers then found henna in his hair. Kumar was then disqualified and an FIR has been registered against him under section 420 (cheating of IPC).

"I knew I was short by 1 cm from the minimum height required to qualify. I tried everything possible, but my height did not increase. Since I had cleared the written test, I did not want this opportunity to be wasted and rather thought of a trick to appear tall," Kumar said in his confessional statement.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 28, 2018 01:14 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).