Vyapam scam: Charge sheet filed against accused

The CBI Saturday filed a charge-sheet here against 26 persons who had allegedly rigged a recruitment test conducted by the Madhya Pradesh Professional Examination Board (MPPEB) or 'Vyapam' in 2012.

The charge-sheet is part of the Central Bureau of Investigation's (CBI) probe into what is known as the Vyapam scam-- large-scale rigging of entrance and recruitment exams conducted by the MPPEB.

"We have filed a charge-sheet in the court of special CBI judge Suresh Singh," said the central agency's special prosecutor for the Vyapam scam Satish Dinkar.

The MPPEB is better known by its Hindi acronym 'Vyapam' (Vyavsayik Pariksha Mandal).

"They have been charged with forgery, criminal conspiracy (under the IPC) as well as under the Prevention of Corruption Act and Information Technology Act," Dinkar said.

The accused include 19 candidates who allegedly tried to pass the test for transport constable's post by greasing the palms of middlemen and Vyapam officials, he said.

Besides, it names Vyapam officials including former controller of exams Pankaj Trivedi and three middlemen.

The Special Task Force of Madhya Pradesh police which investigated the scam initially had filed a case against the accused in October 2014.

A total of 56,450 candidates had appeared for the exam for transport constable's post in August 2012.