Indore, Dec. 27 – In a landmark decision that brings further weight to the long‑running Vyapam scandal, a special CBI court in Indore found 12 defendants guilty of impersonation in the 2011 Pre‑Medical Test (PMT) administered by the Madhya Pradesh Professional Examination Board.
The 12 men were each sentenced to five years of rigorous imprisonment and fined ₹6,000. The defendants had posed as legitimate examinees, allowing outsiders to sit in their place. When the court issued its ruling, the convicts were taken into custody. Among them, four were from Madhya Pradesh and eight hailed from Uttar Pradesh, underscoring that the operation crossed state borders.
Presiding Judge Shubhra Singh, after a thorough examination of the evidence, declared the defendants guilty of orchestrating a systematic fraud. The prosecution had demonstrated a chain that began with genuine applicants, proceeded to imposters who represented them on exam day, and culminated in middlemen who engineered the scheme for financial gain. The judge cautioned that such conduct not only violates the law but also robs deserving students of fair opportunities when the stakes are as high as medical college admissions.
“This is a betrayal of deserving candidates’ futures,” the judge remarked. The court also noted that a separate case involving a minor who was underage at the time of the offence had already been tried earlier.
The Vyapam scandal, uncovered in 2013, exposed a wide‑robed network involving officials, politicians and racketeers who manipulated examinations for government jobs and professional courses. Thousands of people were implicated, and the probe has even claimed lives, adding to the controversy. In 2015, under the direction of the Supreme Court, the investigation was handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation.
This conviction is part of a growing list of judgments linked to the Vyapam case, signaling that the authorities are unwilling to tolerate loopholes in the examination process. Earlier this month, other fraud cases—such as irregularities in Patwari recruitment—also received comparable sentences.
Legal analysts praise the verdict as a step toward closure on the decade‑old scandal, though many related cases remain pending. Advocates for victims urge the implementation of stronger safeguards to prevent future exploitation of competitive examinations.
The sentenced individuals will likely appeal, but the immediate imposition of jail terms serves as a stern warning to anyone considering fraudulent tactics in exams.
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