A POST OFFICE MANAGER backed by Princess Kate and her family in his 10-year fight for justice today demanded: “Now quash every conviction.”
The Middletons’ village shopkeeper Hasmukh Shingadia, 63, said they had “a lot of support” as he had his suspended sentence overturned for false accounting.
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Grandfather Hasmukh would serve sweets to teenage Kate and sister Pippi at the Spar and post office he has run since 1998. Credit: Dan Charity
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The Middletons attended a celebratory tea party at Bucklebury Memorial Hall after his conviction was overturnedCredit: Getty
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Hsasmukh received an invitation from Kate to her wedding to Prince William in 2011. Credit: Camera Press
Grandad Hasmukh would serve sweets to teenage Kate and sister Pippa at the Spar and Post Office he has run in Upper Bucklebury, Berks, since 1998.
He received an invitation from Kate to her wedding to Prince William in 2011.
But months later he was convicted of false accounting and given a suspended prison sentence after his fraudulent Horizon computer system showed a £16,000 discrepancy.
His conviction was overturned in July 2021 – when the Middletons attended a celebratory tea party at Bucklebury Memorial Hall.
Hasmukh said, “They kept coming to my shop and spending money here. Even after Kate got engaged, she would still come.
“Not everyone did it, and some locals avoided me.”
He called on Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to release all 736 deputy postmasters convicted from 2000 to 2015 and supported an inquiry into rogue post office bosses.
In his first years at the store, Kate and Pippa stopped by for Doritos and Haribo. And William would pop in for ice cream and a newspaper during his romance with Kate, who turned 42 yesterday.
Recalling his invitation to the royal wedding, Hasmukh, married to Chandrika, 55, said, “It meant so much to us. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity that they gave me despite the allegations.
“The fact that they did that for us was incredible.
“I have known them for over 25 years and they have always been such kind and welcoming people.
“After my conviction was overturned and it was in the media, Michael Middleton came and asked what had happened.
“He was overjoyed and said: ‘Well done’. I know I couldn’t directly ask them for help because of the situation they were in. But I’m really grateful to my extended family for standing by me. They are really good people.”
Hasmukh bought his branch for around £60,000 and spent thousands on renovations. Fujitsu’s Horizon system was installed in 2001.
He immediately noticed glitches in the technology, before error messages in 2009 and 2010 showed shortfalls of several hundred pounds.
Financial mistakes
Financial errors are caused by faulty software that duplicates transactions, despite assurances that errors are not possible.
The total amount missing was £16,000, which Hasmukh tried to make up by investing his own earnings and borrowing from friends and family.
Hasmukh said he called the helpline several times, but the post office offered no support and claimed the problem was isolated. In March 2010, Post auditors suspended him after finding a shortfall.
That year he was diagnosed with cancer, underwent surgery for sarcoma and lost his mother.
His contract with the post office was later terminated before lawyers at the public body launched an attempt to prosecute him.
Hasmukh pleaded guilty on the advice of his lawyer, who warned that fighting the case could land him in prison for years.
And, just 83 days after the royal wedding, he was given an eight-month suspended sentence at Oxford crown court, ordered to pay more than £2,000 in costs and do 200 hours of community service.
Hasmukh said: “It was horrible, not only for me, but for my family. We’ve all been through hell. I had suicidal thoughts. I’m still dealing with the aftermath emotionally and mentally.”
He was later put in touch with campaigner and former post office assistant Alan Bates — played by Toby Jones in the ITV drama Mr Bates vs The Post Office — who advised him on how to appeal.
Hasmukh said of the win: “I just cried because it took so long.
“The fact that we kept the documents meant that it was much simpler to correct our conviction.”
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Hasmukh pleaded guilty on the advice of his lawyer who warned that fighting the case could land him in jail for years Credit: Dan Charity
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In his early years at Hasmukh’s store, Kate and Pippa would pop in for Doritos and Haribo. Credit: Getty
About 236 branch managers served prison sentences. At least four took their own lives.
About 60 are believed to have died before their convictions could be overturned.
Only 93 were canceled despite evidence that the Post Office was aware of the errors.
Hasmukh said, “Those who are imprisoned will never get that time back. Even those who did not go to prison lost years due to stress.”
He slammed former Post Office chief executive Paula Vennells for keeping her CBE until today, after a petition calling for him to be reinstated reached 1.2 million signatures. Ms Vennells, who left the role in 2019, received £4.5m during her seven-and-a-half-year tenure.
Hasmukh said: “Mr Bates refused his OBE but she kept her CBE, so yes, that’s good news, the right decision.”
Hasmukh still works more than 13 hours a day at Spar, which no longer has a post office.
In 2022, he told a Horizon inquiry that his second home in Leicester, to which he had planned to retire, had been repossessed following his conviction.
He was watching a TV drama, but his daughter couldn’t because of her memories.
Hasmukh added: “It was necessary. I hope there will be progress now.”
- The four-part drama and documentary that aired last week has already been watched by 14.8 million viewers.
The persecuted postal staff were owed full compensation
Rebecca Thomson, the reporter who broke the story
THERE are a few things most scandal-ridden postmasters have in common – their decency, their kindness and the injustice that ruined their lives.
This was evident when I first spoke to some in 2008 when I was working at Computer Weekly magazine.
We received a letter from Alan Bates, Deputy Postmaster of Llandudno, North Wales, and one from Lee Castleton, of Bridlington, East Yorks.
I called them and we went in search of others willing to take the record.
The group I spoke to early on turned out to be only a small number of those affected.
Many have lost their savings, livelihoods and even homes.
I am proud that whistleblowers, like Mr. Bates and Mr. Castleton, are finally getting the justice they deserve.
I am angry that the Government ignored the journalists until they had to notice.
The story is difficult to tell because mail and computer programs are not exciting topics.
But the ITV drama – in which I was briefly played by Matilda Bailes – managed to show how these people’s lives were destroyed.
Many were offered small compensations. Lawyers called it a scandal within a scandal.
It’s time for immediate action. Pay the subpostmen what they are owed.
Categories: Optical Illusion
Source: HIS Education