by Bhupen Goswami

Guwahati : In Assam, a major scam case has come to light against 36 teachers who got jobs on the basis of fake certificates. With this, the Chief Minister’s Special Vigilance Cell of Assam has come across 13 cases of employment by paying money in Assam Power Distribution Company Limited (APDCL). A senior Assam Police CID official today said that 36 TET teachers have been arrested for getting jobs on the basis of fake certificates. A senior CID official said chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had directed CID Assam to register a case after receiving a complaint in the case. The complaint received by the CM had said that the teachers had submitted fake TET certificates to the director of education, Kokrajhar to get a job in BTR. A case has been registered against the teachers who got jobs on the basis of fake certificates. 

The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of Assam Police has registered a case against 36 teachers who got jobs on the basis of fake Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) certificate in Bodoland Territorial Area (BTR).Cases have been registered against these teachers under Sections 120 (B) (Criminal Conspiracy) 420 (Cheating), 467 (Forgery), 468 (Forgery for Fraud) and 471 IPC (Submission of Forged Documents). A statement issued by the police department said chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had directed CID Assam to register a case after receiving a complaint in the case. The complaint received by the CM had said that the teachers had submitted fake TET certificates to the director of education, Kokrajhar to get a job in BTR. The statement further said that the matter was investigated after the chief minister’s direction and the allegation was found to be true. Thereafter, a Special Investigation Team of CID was constituted to look into the matter. It may be recalled that TET certificate is mandatory for appointment of teachers in government schools.Several accused have been brought to cid headquarters from various districts of Assam for questioning and verification of documents, the statement said. 

Investigations conducted so far have revealed that fake TET certificates were submitted, such as the accused showed merit despite failing the examination, in some cases fake roll number was used to produce fake certificates, and in some other cases the roll numbers of successful candidates were misused by failed candidates. On the other hand, the Chief Minister’s Special Vigilance Cell of Assam has come across a case of employment by paying money in Assam Power Distribution Company Limited (APDCL). Several people have been arrested for their involvement in the money scam in exchange for jobs. Officials of the Chief Minister’s Special Vigilance Cell conducted a search operation in four areas of Guwahati city and arrested at least 13 persons in connection with the case.