Days after IPS officer Amrit Paul was arrested in the police sub-inspector (PSI) recruitment scam, the officer has refuted the allegations levelled against him and has claimed that malpractices were carried out by his junior officer, officials from the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) aware of his interrogation said on Thursday.
Paul is the first officer of the additional director general of police (ADGP) rank — second-highest rank in the police hierarchy — to be arrested in the state in connection with a corruption case.
Paul who was heading the Police Recruitment Cell, Karnataka, was arrested on Monday after his name cropped up in the ongoing investigation into the PSI scam, where money was taken from candidates to enable them to cheat during their examinations or for tampering their answers sheets after the exam.
A senior CID official confirmed that Paul, an IPS officer of the 1995 batch, was arrested under Sections 409, 406, 420, 468, 469, 461, 471 and 120 B of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for criminal breach of trust by a public servant, criminal breach of trust, cheating, forgery, dishonestly breaking open receptacle containing property, using as a genuine forged document or electronic record and criminal conspiracy. He has been placed under suspension under the All-India Services (Discipline & Appeals) Rule, 1969.
The key aspect of probe against Paul is deputy superintendent of police (DySP) Shanta Kumar, who made a statement before a magistrate, pointing at his role, another officer in the same department said on the condition of anonymity. “Our investigation was bottom to top one. We started with the candidates, then went to examination centres and eventually built the case upwards. It was during the time we got evidence against Shanta Kumar,” said the officer.
{{/usCountry}}The key aspect of probe against Paul is deputy superintendent of police (DySP) Shanta Kumar, who made a statement before a magistrate, pointing at his role, another officer in the same department said on the condition of anonymity. “Our investigation was bottom to top one. We started with the candidates, then went to examination centres and eventually built the case upwards. It was during the time we got evidence against Shanta Kumar,” said the officer.
{{/usCountry}}Kumar had a long tenure at the recruitment cell over the past 12 years with brief interludes during which he was transferred out. However, he used to return to the cell, where he joined as an inspector and was promoted to a DSP, according to a senior police officer.
“So far, we have found that 30 aspirants had paid money, ranging from ₹30 lakh to ₹40 lakh, to Kumar to get into the toppers’ list. For this, Kumar recruited some officers within the cell. First division assistant (an official with the police department) Harsha and reserved sub-inspector (RSI) Sridhar helped him infilling the blank OMR sheets while another official Srinivas helped him in getting the papers out of the strongroom and switch off the CCTV cameras,” said the official.
ADGP Paul was aware of Kumar’s influence in the department, the official citied above said. “All the responsibilities of the department, like preparation of question papers to selection of centres, printing question papers and supply of OMR sheets were completely taken care of by Kumar. He was also aware of the malpractices within the cell and gave his support for the same, after taking kickbacks for the same,” the official added.
While the ADGP continues to deny his role in the case, a detailed confessional statement made by Kumar under Section 164 of the CrPC listed instances of Paul’s involvement in the scam. The CID also have call data records (CDRs), which link the officer with the scam, said, officials.
Meanwhile, the state government suspended Paul on Monday following this arrest. The order, however, said Paul is entitled to subsistence allowance in accordance with the All-India service rules. The order also stated that Paul should not leave the headquarters under any circumstance without the written permission of the government.