Chhattisgarh court convicts five accused in Vyapam PMT question paper leak case

RAIPUR: In a significant development, a court on Chhattisgarh has sentenced five accused to six years imprisonment for their involvement in the leak of question papers of pre-medical test (PMT) conducted by state’s professional examination Board, popularly known Vyapam.
Additional chief judicial magistrate Prabkahar Gwal convicted the accused and sentenced them to five years imprisonment while one of the accused, identified as Bedi Ram, was earlier declared as an absconder.One of the accused Ajit Singh has been acquitted.
Police had registered a case in 2011 after question papers of medical entrance examination, being conducted by state Vyapam leaked, leading to cancellation of examination that year.
The kingpin Bedi Ram, who is still absconding, is said to be involved in PMT scandals in Madhya Pradesh as well as in Uttar Pradesh, police said.
The accused who have been convicted are Shailendra pandey, Rajesh Kumar Sachan, Sunil Kumar Singh, Deehraj Upadhyaya and Satya Narayan Sahu. All the convicts have been sent to judicial custody.
According to prosecution, PMT’s chemistry and zoology question papers of 2011 matched with the model question papers uploaded on the website of a coaching centre. During subsequent investigations, police raided several places, including in other states, and arrested five persons.