Vyapam case: CBI terms Namrata's death a murder, files three FIRs

The CBI has registered three FIRs in the Vyapam scam -- including one related to the mysterious death of Namrata Damor which has now been considered as a murder, sources said on Friday. It has also taken custody of the case diary of journalist Akshay Singh's death case.

Contrary to an earlier observation on Namrata's death, the CBI investigating the Madhya Pradesh Vyapam scam and the deaths related to it on Friday opted to view it as a murder case, CBI sources said.

The agency filed a case under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code against unidentified people, after the case diary of Namrata's death was handed over to the CBI on Thursday night.

The number of First Information Reports (FIRs) filed in the Vyapam scam so far has now reached eight.

Jhabua Police Superintendent Abid Khan told IANS the case diary on death of TV journalist Akshay Singh has been sent to the CBI.

Akshyay Singh was found dead in mysterious circumstances in Jhabua's Meghnagar while covering the Namrata Damor death case, viewed as most sensational of all other deaths linked to the Vyapam scam.

The body of Namrata Damor, a second-year MBBS student of Indore city's Mahatma Gandhi Medical College on January 7, 2012, was found on Shivpura-Bherupur rail track in Ujjain district, police sources said.

With regard to Pre-Medical Test 2010, two incidents have been registered and 12 people have been mentioned as accused, CBI sources added.

Meanwhile, the Congress party here on Friday said no court had given any clean chit to Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan but the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party is falsely claiming that he has been given a 'clean chit' by court in the scam.

State Congress spokesperson K.K. Mishra said: "Neither the court has give Chouhan any clean chit nor termed Congress leader Digvijaya Singh and whistleblower Prashant Pandey's excel-sheet wrong. Still, from BJP's Nandkumar Chouhan to union minister Prakash Javadekar they are saying the chief minister has got clean chit."

A 40-member CBI team under supervision of Joint Director R.P. Aggarwal began probing the Vyapam scam earlier this week on the directive of the Supreme Court.

Vyapam (Vyavsayik Pariksha Mandal) conducts recruitment and entrance exams not organised by the Madhya Pradesh Public Service Commission.

The Vyapam scam came to light in 2013 and has since assumed mind-boggling proportions, leading to the arrest of nearly 2,100 people. At least 40 people linked in some way to the scam have also died, either in mysterious circumstances or have committed suicide.