They sold paper to students; suspect's house raided

Bengaluru, Apr 6 (DHNS): The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) on Wednesday arrested the two physical education teachers who had bagged the Best Teacher Award a few months ago.

Two award-winning teachers were the latest to be arrested on the charges of selling the II PU Chemistry question paper before the examination on March 21.

The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) on Wednesday arrested the two physical education teachers who had bagged the Best Teacher Award a few months ago.

The suspects were identified as Anil of Malleswaram, working at Poornaprajna College in Sadashivanagar, and Satish of Mathikere, working as a physical education teacher at government high school in Palace Gutthalli, police said.

Manjunath, a teacher arrested a few days ago, had given the question paper to Satish and Anil.

The duo got Rs 50,000 each as commission from Manjunath and collected Rs 6 lakh more from students and parents for supplying the question paper.

They had sold the paper in Kolar, Chikkaballapur, Tumakuru, Ballari and other places. Police will produce them before the magistrate on Thursday and seek their custody.

The duo has been booked under Indian Penal Code Sections 418 (cheating with knowledge that wrongful loss may ensue to person whose interest the offender is bound to protect), 381 (theft by clerk or servant of property in possession of master) and sections 115 and 23 of Karntaka Education Act.

The two teachers identified potential students and made them note down the question paper in a room after collecting the money.

Raids continue

Meanwhile, the CID officers on Wednesday raided the two-bedroom house of the absconding Shivakumaraiah, one of the key suspects.

Police seized incriminating material, photocopying machine, question paper bundles and question papers of various examinations conducted by different agencies in the past from the house in Kanteeravanagar, Nandini Layout.

“We are probing if Shivakumaraiah’s house and the materials seized were used to leak the question paper,” said a senior officer.

Police had secured five people, including Satish, on March 29 based on WhatsApp messages. One of the five disclosed Manjunath’s involvement.

Manjunath, Satish and Anil knew each other for the last few years as they were all physical education teachers. Normally, physical education teachers accompany others in vehicles transporting question paper boxes.

One of Shivakumaraiah’s accomplices, who was also a physical education teacher, knew the flaws in the system. He had helped Shivakumaraiah get the question papers in the past.

Thus, the link of physical education teachers with the leak began, said the police.Other papers leaked? CID sleuths are however unable to confirm reports that all PU (Science) question papers had leaked.

“We are convinced that about 75% of the students had got the leaked Chemistry paper before the examination began. They may have got other question papers too, but there is no evidence to establish this. We have evidence only about the Chemistry question paper leak,” an investigating officer told Deccan Herald.