2 Vyapam accused in fray, whistleblowers opt out
THE CBI HAS SO FAR CHARGED 3,600 PEOPLE IN THE VYAPAM CASE. GIVEN THAT NUMBER, THIS ISN’T SURPRISING
BHOPAL: Two of the accused in the so-called Vyapam case are candidates in the forthcoming Madhya Pradesh assembly elections even as two whistle-blowers who were to supposed contest have withdrawn their candidature, although not in the same seats.
Vyapam is the Hindi acronym for the admissions test conducting authority in the state — for everything from medical colleges to government jobs — and the multiyear fraud was unearthed in 2013.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has so far charged 3,600 people in the case. Given that number and the political links in the case, it isn’t surprising that some of the accused are candidates.
The Vyapam fraud is an important issue in the elections, with the Opposition Congress party alleging that top Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders were involved in the case. The BJP’S defence is that it was instrumental in exposing the fraud and that none of the guilty, which includes a minister, have been spared.
Dr Jagdish Sagar, one of the accused in the case, filed his nomination this week from Gohad constituency in Bhind district on a Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) ticket. In his affidavit before the election commission, he has mentioned “Chal-kapat” (cheating) in the column pertaining to criminal cases and also listed the cases against him.
These include cheating, fraud, and some under the Arms Act and the Excise Act.
According to the charge sheet filed against Dr Sagar by the Madhya Pradesh Police’s Special Task Force and CBI, he allegedly earned crores of rupees by rigging various pre-medical tests over the years. According to the candidate’s affidavit, he has moveable assets worth ~1.82 crore, and his wife Sunita has movable assets worth ~39.29 lakh. He also owns immovable assets worth ~3.78 crore, while his wife owns immovable assets worth ~1.30 crore.
Dr Sagar, who has already started campaigning, said: “I was always interested in contesting elections in 2013 elections also, but this time I got the ticket from the BSP.” Countering the charges against him, he said: “I have been a scapegoat while the main players have been allowed to go free, and I am sure I will get justice.”
BSP state president Pradeep Ahirwar said Dr Sagar has not been convicted so far, and is eligible to contest.
Phundelal Singh Marco, the Congress candidate from Pushparajgarh, Annuppur district,is another accused in the case — in his instance, he is charged with paying money and helping his son cheat in the 2009 medical entrance test.
In his affidavit, Marco has written “Vyapam” and then listed the various sections of Indian Penal Code (IPC) dealing with fraud, cheating, and conspiracy under which he has been charged.
Despite several attempts, Marco could not be contacted over phone. His office said he was busy campaigning. Marco has previously denied the charges and said the court would clear him.
The Madhya Pradesh Congress media cell in-charge, Shobha Oza, didn’t have an immediate response when asked why the Congress, which has made Vyapam an issue in the elections, gave a ticket to Marco.
Interestingly, two whistleblowers who helped unearth the fraud, Dr Anand Rai and Ashish Chaturvedi, and who were given tickets by the Jai Adivasi Yuva Shakti (JAYS), a tribal party, have decided not to contest after the party’s leader abandoned it and defected to the Congress, which has fielded him from Manawar.
Rai claims he was “assured by Congress leaders that I would be given ticket from Indore-5, but the promise was not kept”.
Oza said she was not aware of any such promise.
Another whistle-blower and a former independent legislator from Ratlam city, Paras Saklecha, is disappointed that neither he nor any other whistle-blower has been fielded by the Congress. “I feel betrayed and hurt. I was promised a ticket from Ratlam and joined the Congress in March 2018 on that assurance.”
Saklecha, who raised the Vyapam issue repeatedly in the assembly when he was an independent, said he is still campaigning for the Congress and expects it to form the government.