Bihar toppers scam: Ex-BSEB chairman evades SIT

The Bihar toppers scandal probe has hit a roadblock. M I Khan/Rediff.com reports from Patna.

Even as the Special Investigation Team conducts raids to arrest the suspects in the Bihar School Examination Board merit scandal, former BSEB chairman Lalkeshwar Prasad Singh has gone underground.

Vishun Roy College director-cum-principal Amit Kumar 'Bachcha' Rai has also been evading arrest after the controversy erupted over irregularities in the evaluation of marks in this year's Class 12 examination.

Shortly after resigning from his post on Wednesday, June 8, Singh's home was raided by the SIT headed by Patna Senior Superintendent of Police Manu Maharaj. But Singh was not home.

"He has remained incommunicado," an SIT officer told this reporter. "He fears an arrest."

"As board chairman, Singh has to be held accountable for the Class 12 results fiasco," the officer added.

The SIT has so far detained eight people in connection with the controversy following the filing of a police complaint on Monday, June 6.

Four students -- Ruby Rai, Sourabh Shrestha, Rahul Kumar and Shalini, the 'toppers' in the Class 12 exams whose unfamiliarity with their chosen subjects of study was exposed on local television and revealed what was going on, particularly in V R college -- are also named in the police complaint.

On Wednesday, the SIT visited the homes of the four students, asking their families to ensure that the students and their parents appear before the police on Thursday.

The case lodged at Patna's Kotwali police station alleges fraud and machination by the V R college to influence the results of the Class 12 exam.

"The answer books of the toppers appeared to have been changed, which makes it a case of fraud," a police officer said.

According to the FIR, the exam centre for V R College students was located at the G A High School in Hajipur, the Vaishali district headquarters.

All the answer books from Vaishali went for evaluation to Arrah and Bhabhua, except for the V R College which were evaluated at the Rajendra Nagar High School in Patna reportedly as a "special favour".

"That naturally raised questions," the police officer said.