One year after the Supreme Court transferred all criminal and death cases linked to the Vyapam scam to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for a “fair and impartial” probe, the agency has revealed that there was no foul play in the death of MP governor Ram Naresh Yadav’s son Shailesh — who was found dead in Lucknow on March 25, 2015, or in 11 other deaths linked to the multi-crore scam and has closed the probe. It is, however, still probing 12 other mysterious deaths linked to the scam. While the Vyapam story is indeed complicated, what is intriguing is that while so many cases linked to deaths have been closed, the agency is yet to unravel the innards of the scam or arrest the guilty.
Last week, in a letter to the probe agency, the state Congress raised some crucial questions: Why have some key names that had surfaced in the investigation not been called for questioning by the agency? Why have the calls or details of mobile numbers that were allegedly being used by influential people not been investigated? The party also alleged that some of the influential people that had been arrested by the Special Task Force (STF) of the state police, which was investigating the scam before the CBI took over, have been released on bail and can influence the probe. The CBI must come clean on these questions.
When the professional examination scam broke in 2013, authorities thought it was just another case of candidates paying touts to get into a coveted college or secure a plum government job. But in a few days, it became clear that it was far from being a simple corruption case; more than 2,000 people have been arrested in connection with the scam, including former education minister Laxmikant Sharma. His former officer on special duty (OSD) OP Shukla and former PA Sudhir Sharma are also behind bars. Even the MP governor and a senior-level police officer were found involved. What’s scary is that there probably are many professionals out there, including doctors, who cleared the exams by unfair means and, therefore, are not suited for whatever role they are in. Who will bring them to book? While the CBI has said that its probe is still on, it must answer the questions raised by the Congress. The Vyapam case, which has left so much death and wrongdoing in its wake, cannot be allowed to fall by the wayside.