MP: Medical entrance test candidate, his proxy sentenced to five years in jail in Vyapam scam

INDORE: A special court here on Wednesday awarded five years' rigorous imprisonment to a candidate at the Pre-Medical Test (PMT) and a proxy who helped him clear it in a case related to the infamous Vyapam scam in Madhya Pradesh.

Judge Sanjay Gupta of the special court set up for the trial of Vyapam scam cases also imposed a fine of Rs 14,000 each on accused Purushottam Khoiya and Saurabh Chandra Gupta after holding them guilty under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and Madhya Pradesh Recognised Examination Act. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) examined 28 witnesses during the trial, said the agency's special public prosecutor Ranjan Sharma here.

Both the accused, originally from Uttar Pradesh, are about 35 years old, he said. As per the CBI, Khoiya had registered for the PMT -- entrance test for the MBBS course -- in 2009, but in the actual examination, Gupta appeared in his place. After clearing the examination in this fraudulent way, Khoiya got admission to the Government Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Medical College in Indore.

"In 2014, unidentified persons sent two letters to then dean of the college, Dr Pushpa Verma, claiming that Khoiya had got selected fraudulently," Sharma said. The dean set up an inquiry committee which confirmed the fraud, following which a case was registered at Sanyogitaganj police station. Gupta himself was pursuing MBBS course at a Delhi college when his role in the crime came to light.

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The Vyapam scam (Vyapam denoted the Madhya Pradesh Vyavasayik Pariksha Mandal or professional examination board), which came to light in 2013, pertained to alleged nexus of gangsters, officials and political leaders in the rigging of entrance examinations/tests for the state government service and professional courses. The CBI took over the probe of the multi-crore scam on the Supreme Court's directions in 2015.