Four more Sambalpur-based private colleges have come under scrutiny even as the Crime Branch on Tuesday arrested Subash Barik, a close aide of Chairman of Shandilya College of Science and Commerce Kartik Chandra Barik.
The four colleges are Newton college, AIMS plus two college, Ainthapali Vedic plus two science college and Veer Surendra Sai Institute of Science. Crime Branch officials raided the colleges and documents crucial for the investigation were seized from Newton college. The officials and staff of the colleges were also questioned. In Newton college, it was found that four of its students bagged ranks in top 10 list two years back, and one of them was the daughter of a CHSE official. Interestingly, the average marks of the total student intake was found to be only 50 per cent.
CB has also zeroed in on 15 other colleges where students have performed exceptionally well in the past few years. It is following a pattern in the way in which the question paper racket might be engineered. The colleges have been placed under suspicion on the basis of the results of the past few years, students intake and fee structure.
“We are investigating all possible clues and will come out with more detailed information soon. More colleges might be involved in the question paper leak,” said Additional Director-General, Crime Branch, BK Sharma.
The CB on Monday arrested the suspended Deputy Secretary of CHSE Debendra Behera and Chairman of Shandilya College of Science and Commerce Kartik Chandra Barik, for their involvement in the leak.
Kartik and Subash Barik, who handled the marketing department of Shandilya College were taken in two-day remand for questioning on Tuesday.Behera and Barik have reportedly conceded that many more are involved in the racket. Even though Sharma did not reveal involvement of other CHSE officials in the racket, he did not deny it either.