4 lakh fake students in Haryana govt schools: CBI

PTI

New Delhi, June 28

The CBI registered an FIR on Friday in connection with four lakh fake students detected in Haryana government schools in 2016, officials said. The case was handed over to the CBI on the orders of the Punjab and Haryana High Court on November 2, 2019.

The CBI had approached the Supreme Court claiming that the investigation may require huge manpower and the probe should be given to the state police. The court dismissed the petition recently, after which the CBI registered the FIR.

The high court was informed in 2016 that a verification of data revealed that there were 22 lakh students in government schools in different classes, but only 18 lakh students were actually found. Four lakh were fake admissions.

The court was also told that certain benefits were being given to the students belonging to backward or poor sections of society to encourage them to attend schools, including midday meal.

The high court had ordered the state Vigilance to appoint a senior officer to inquire into the suspected siphoning off of funds for four lakh “non-existent” students. The Bench ordered the fixing of responsibility and to also take action commensurate with the guilt proved as a measure of deterrence.

On the Vigilance Bureau’s recommendations, seven FIRs were registered in the state.

In its 2019 order, the high court noted that after the registration of FIRs, the investigation was “very slow”. It then transferred the probe to the CBI for a proper, thorough and expeditious investigation.

It had asked the state Vigilance to hand over all documents within a week of its order on November 2, 2019, and asked the CBI to file a status report within three months.

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