Lucknow (The Hawk): Twelve people have been detained by the Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF) in relation to the Ayush admissions fraud.
On November 7, the Ayush admission anomalies scam was referred to the CBI for investigation.
An STF representative confirmed the arrests of S.N. Singh, Umakant Yadav, and Bhaskar, two additional officials who were suspended, as well as nine other members of the organising firm.
They were detained late on Thursday night in Hazratganj, Lucknow, and were charged with criminal conspiracy (section 120B), dishonesty (420), forging documents fraudulently or dishonestly to pass for real ones (468), and using any document as genuine while it is not (section 471) of the IPC.
According to the STF, it was discovered during the investigation that Singh, along with two other officials, the organising private company, Soft Solution Private Limited, and it is alleged that they falsified the information they obtained from the directorate, resulting in the admission of deserving candidates.
The investigation also showed that, in many instances, the merit hierarchy was not followed. Additionally, in some instances, the chosen students hadn't even taken the NEET.
The STF has written to the vice chancellor of the University of Agra in the meantime, alleging that the case was being influenced by the current Kanpur VC, Vinay Pathak.
The STF claimed in the letter that Pathak's immediate family members were on campus at Agra University and were tampering with the documents.
Some of the office holders in Agra University did not even cooperate with the STF during the investigation.
Numerous pieces of evidence were discovered to have been tampered with when the STF investigation got underway.
The university vice chancellor has reportedly been informed of this and asked to stop tampering with the evidence, according to a senior STF officer.
A list of those who are influencing the investigation is also being prepared by the STF.
Vinay Pathak is one of two people who have been arrested in connection with the scam for paying the invoice for a private company that conducted pre- and post-exams at the University of Agra.
(Inputs from Agencies)