The Assam Police on Friday filed a 2,621-page chargesheet before a special court in Guwahati against 36 people for their reported involvement in the police Sub-Inspector (SI) recruitment exam question paper leak scam, the officials said.
The chargesheet along with a 1,217-page case diary named retired Deputy Inspector General Prasanta Kumar Dutta, former Karimganj district Police Chief Kumar Sanjit Krishna and expelled Bharatiya Janata Party leader Dibon Deka.
The chargesheet was submitted in a special court within 87 days after the first arrest in the case. The 36 accused belong to four districts.
Talking to the media, Criminal Investigation Department’s Inspector General Surendra Kumar said that during the investigation of the sensitive case the CID, Crime Branch officials and police personnel had seized over Rs 6.26 crore cash, 32 mobile phones, 11 digital video recorder, five laptops and ten vehicles, including a two wheeler.
On September 20, the State Level Police Recruitment Board (SLPRB) had cancelled the written test for 597 SI posts a few minutes after it had started after the question paper was leaked on social media.
On September 12, the then SLPRB chairman Pradeep Kumar, who subsequently quit the post owning moral responsibility, had issued a notification cautioning all concerned specially the candidates against touts and middle men after an audio clip went viral that promised a job of the SI in exchange of Rs 4 lakh.
Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal, who directed the CID and the Assam Police Crime Branch to probe the question paper leak scam, earlier said in a statement that during the four-and-a-half years rule of the BJP government over 80,000 youths got government jobs on the basis of merit.
The cases were registered after a complaint was lodged by the then chairman of the SLPRB.
The opposition parties including Congress and various civil society organisations had accused the ruling BJP of operating a job syndicate in various government departments and demanded an inquiry by a sitting High Court judge into all recruitments made during the last four-and-a-half year.
Meanwhile, over 65,000 candidates in 150 centres across 33 districts on November 22 appeared for the written examination of 597 posts of unarmed Assam police SI for the second time, two months after the massive scam of leaking question paper.
