DEHRADUN: A Special Investigation Team probing the alleged use of forged freedom fighter-dependent certificates for securing medical admissions under NEET-UG arrested two people on Tuesday, marking the first arrests in the case.
The accused have been identified as alleged mastermind Rupesh Pandit, who runs an educational consultancy in Meerut, and Arvind Kumar, whose daughter allegedly obtained admission using a forged certificate.
The arrests were made after the two were summoned to Raipur police station in Dehradun for questioning. Police said they were taken into custody after being confronted with documentary and other evidence gathered during the investigation.
Dehradun Senior Superintendent of Police Pramendra Dobhal said Pandit and his associates had allegedly demanded Rs 45 lakh for each admission under the freedom fighter-dependant quota. Families of three candidates had paid Rs 20 lakh each as advance, while the remaining amount was to be paid after admission and commencement of classes.
“Forged freedom fighter-dependent certificates were prepared using fabricated documents, following which the three candidates secured MBBS admission in different medical colleges,” SSP Dobhal said.
According to the SIT, Kumar had approached Pandit to arrange an MBBS seat for his daughter. He also sought admissions for the children of two acquaintances.
Kumar allegedly admitted during questioning that he had paid ₹20 lakh as advance for his daughter’s certificate and admission. A case has also been registered against her at Raipur police station.
Investigators said Pandit had been working as an education consultant with his associates for nearly five years. He operated a company named MECODO Pathshala in Meerut and allegedly facilitated admissions, on commission, to MBBS, BTech, BCA, BBA and BCom courses at private universities in India and abroad.
“Pandit owns a major institute in Meerut that prepares students for medical and other competitive examinations. Forged certificates prepared through his network are suspected to have been used in India and abroad,” the SSP said.
A 10-member SIT visited Haridwar on Tuesday to scrutinise the records of candidates who allegedly obtained MBBS and BDS seats using such certificates. The team has seized documents from the educational institutions concerned.
Police said addresses mentioned in the candidates’ records were found to be incorrect. Further verification at their institutions helped investigators trace their original addresses and establish suspected links among the beneficiaries, their families and the certificate network.
The role of e-district and Common Service Centres is also being examined to determine how the forged certificates were generated and authenticated.
At least 12 other suspects remain under scrutiny, and police indicated that more arrests were likely.
“Several suspects are on our radar, and the SIT is conducting the investigation on priority. Every person involved in preparing, facilitating or using forged documents will face stringent legal action,” Dobhal said.
The investigation reportedly found that several candidates had used forged documents linked to the same freedom fighter, with each claiming to be the person’s grandchild or dependant. The freedom fighter’s actual family had not applied for or claimed any such reservation benefit.
