A trainee sub-inspector, who was recruited through the tainted Madhya Pradesh Professional Examination Board (MPPEB), was found dead in suspicious circumstances in a police academy in Sagar district early on Monday.
The body of Anamika Kushwaha, aged about 25, was found at the Jawahar Lal Nehru Police Training Academy at a time when suspicions have deepened about the systematic elimination of people linked to the Vyapam scam.
Sagar district’s superintendent of police Sachin Atulkar said, prima facie, it appeared to be a case of suicide.
"We haven't recovered any suicide note so far. But the statements of her colleagues suggest she committed suicide. A case has been registered and investigation is on," he said.
Video: Madhya Pradesh CM says every death should not be linked to Vyapam scam
Atulkar contended Kushwaha had nothing to do with the Vyapam scam, so named because of the Hindi acronym for the MPPEB.
According to police sources, Kushwaha went missing from her hostel room late on Sunday night and her body was found floating in a pond located within the academy.
Her body was spotted by a security personnel of the academy, who subsequently informed police.
Savita Sohane, an ASP at the academy, told ANI that Kushwaha had been “mentally stressed” for the past few days.
“She gave her exam last year and joined the batch this February,” Sohane said.
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Kushwaha was a resident of Ambah town of Morena district and was recruited as a sub-inspector in February 2015 through a test conducted by the MPPEB.
Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, under a cloud because of the scandal, described Kushwaha’s death as “unfortunate” but said every death should not be linked to the Vyapam scam.
“Her death is an unfortunate incident but it is not related to the Vyapam scam investigation. Every death should not be linked,” he said.
But senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh referred to Kushwaha’s death as yet “another casualty in the Vyapam scam”.
More than 2,000 people have been arrested in connection with the scam since it came to light in 2013.
Many politicians, bureaucrats and middlemen are said to be involved in the scam which, according to police, involved scamsters employing imposters to write tests conducted by the MPPEB for admission to professional courses and recruitment in government jobs.
The scamsters also supplied forged answer sheets by bribing officials between 2012 and 2013.
Read: 'His lips quivered and he collapsed': Akshay Singh's last moments
Kushwaha was a resident of Ambah town of Morena district and was recruited as a sub-inspector in February 2015 through a test conducted by the MPPEB.
Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, under a cloud because of the scandal, described Kushwaha’s death as “unfortunate” but said every death should not be linked to the Vyapam scam.
“Her death is an unfortunate incident but it is not related to the Vyapam scam investigation. Every death should not be linked,” he said.
But senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh referred to Kushwaha’s death as yet “another casualty in the Vyapam scam”.
More than 2,000 people have been arrested in connection with the scam since it came to light in 2013.
Many politicians, bureaucrats and middlemen are said to be involved in the scam which, according to police, involved scamsters employing imposters to write tests conducted by the MPPEB for admission to professional courses and recruitment in government jobs.
The scamsters also supplied forged answer sheets by bribing officials between 2012 and 2013.
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