NEET impersonation case: Madras HC questions if Judicial Magistrate received certificates or not

The bench has directed the court registry to send a letter to the JM seeking the response.

Medical Dialogues had extensively reported this impersonation scam wherein the Theni Medical College's medico was booked under IPC Sections 419, 420 and 120 (B) for alleged impersonation in NEET. The matter was forwarded to the Selection Committee of the Directorate of Medical Education (DME) and the cops on the basis of the complaint filed by the Theni Medical College Dean Dr AK Rajendran.

Read Also: Tamil Nadu NEET Fraud: Madras HC grants bail to 2 MBBS students; denies relief to parents

The investigation into the matter kept on unfolding unexpected twists, wherein a doctor, who was allegedly liaisoned with an agent who facilitated the impersonation; a Keralite agent; three more MBBS students and their parents also fell under the scanner of the CB-CID.

Apart from the use of proxy candidates, other angles like fudging NEET score were also being looked into in the case. During the preliminary inquiry, it was revealed that lakhs of rupees reportedly changed hands to help aspirants join MBBS through illegal means and a number of other students from Tamil Nadu had also used foul means to gain MBBS admission into medical colleges. Madras High Court observed that the fraud of NEET impersonation for acquiring MBBS Admission may have not been confined to Tamil Nadu alone, but may have spread all over India.

Read Also: Probe into NEET scam to go Pan India: Madras High Court

Several deliberations were made thereafter.

Thereafter, last month, the first student accused in the NEET impersonation case moved the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court seeking a direction to the CB-CID to return his certificates that were taken for investigation, as he wants to pursue higher studies. The petitioner, a resident of Chennai had obtained a medical seat in Theni Government Medical College in 2019. The petitioner, who was arrayed as first accused in the case was arrested and subsequently released on bail.

He sought to return his certificates as he wanted to pursue an undergraduate course in Chennai. The petitioner said that at the time of inquiry, the CB-CID officials had taken custody of his mobile phone and other documents such as his Class X and Class XII mark sheets, transfer certificate and community certificate.

He said that the High Court Bench had granted him bail in the case and he had complied with the conditions imposed by the court. The CB-CID is yet to file a final report (chargesheet) in the case

Under these circumstances, he said that he had approached a few colleges in Chennai seeking admission to arts and science courses. The college authorities had asked him to produce his original certificates, he had said in his petition, quoted The Hindu.

He had stated that he had requested the CB-CID officials to hand over the documents, but there was no response. Then, he had filed a petition before the Theni Judicial Magistrate under Section 457 Cr.P.C, in this regard, according to an earlier report by the Hindu.

However, the petition before the Judicial Magistrate was returned stating that the documents had not been produced. He said that if the documents were not returned his future will be in jeopardy and he would have to face unnecessary hardship.

Later, the additional public prosecutor submitted that the investigation agency had not recovered any documents from the petitioner during the investigation. He further submitted that the dean of the Theni Government Medical College had produced the documents relating to the petitioner and the same were produced before the JM court.

Now during the recent hearing, the bench of honourable Justice R Pongiappan passed the order directing the court registry to send a letter to the judicial magistrate to ascertain as to whether any certificates pertaining to a Neet student, were produced before the JM court by the Theni district CB-CID officials, reports TOI