The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has registered an FIR in connection with four lakh fake students detected in Haryana government schools in 2016.
The Anti Corruption Bureau wing of the CBI police station in Chandigarh filed the FIR under Sections 120 B, 167, 218, 418, 419 and 477A of the IPC.
The case was transferred to the CBI by the Punjab and Haryana High Court on November 2, 2019, following revelations that out of 22 lakh students reportedly enrolled in various classes across government schools, only 18 lakh were verified as genuine, with the remaining four lakh entries identified as fraudulent.
The court was also told that certain benefits were being given to the students who belong to backward or poor sections of the society to encourage them to attend schools and the mid-day meal scheme.
Initially, the State Vigilance Bureau had registered seven FIRs based on its findings. However, citing sluggish progress in the investigation, the High Court intervened in 2019, directing the CBI to take over the case for a thorough and expedient inquiry. The court instructed the state vigilance bureau to promptly hand over all relevant documents to the CBI.
Following the Supreme Court’s recent dismissal of a plea seeking transfer of the investigation back to state authorities, the CBI proceeded to file the FIR.