Edu officer who led inquiry into Nagpur teacher appointments fraud arrested
Vanjari's arrest marks a dramatic turn in a case. The police action against him comes a day after the arrest of a clerk in the deputy director of education's office, Laxman Upasrao Mangham, for allegedly creating fake IDs. According to investigators, Mangham's interrogation led to the flagging of Vanjari's name. Vanjari was also allegedly named during earlier interrogations of the other accused.
The scam, believed to have been running since 2019, involved the illegal generation of Shalarth IDs, digital identifiers used to disburse salaries for ineligible teaching and non-teaching staff, in Nagpur district. Many of these appointments took place even when the government's official recruitment process was on hold.
The scam came to light after Ravindra Dnyaneshwar Patil, a junior administrative officer, filed a formal complaint with the cyber police on March 12, reportedly on the instructions of then divisional deputy director, Ulhas Narad. Following this, a seven-member committee was formed in March under Narad to investigate the misuse of Shalarth IDs. However, on April 11, Narad was arrested after it was found he too had created fake Shalarth IDs.
After Narad's arrest, a new committee was led by Madhuri Savarkar, an education department officer. However, the inquiry was abruptly halted in April with no reason and Vanjari was brought in to lead the investigation. His report submitted to the education commissioner in February listed 244 suspicious appointments, triggering further scrutiny.
In April, the state government formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe into how the fabricated identities were uploaded onto the Shalarth portal to draw salaries of teachers and non-teaching staff. 'This case has exposed serious lapses and collusion within the education department,' a senior officer from the SIT said. 'We are closing in on the main masterminds.'
Police suspect that forged documents and signatures, including those of the late education officer Someshwar Naitam, were used to appoint teachers fraudulently between 2010 and 2014, with their IDs created years later. The SIT has now turned its attention to another senior officer already under suspicion, with further arrests likely
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Indian Express
4 hours ago
- Indian Express
Dharmasthala secret burials case: forum alleges bid to disrupt SIT probe, intimidation of witnesses
A forum has petitioned the Karnataka Government not to 'succumb to political or institutional pressure' in the Dharmasthala secret burials case and to ensure that the Special Investigation Team (SIT) impartially inquires into the allegations made by a former sanitation worker of the temple town. 'We express concern over ongoing efforts by vested political interests, including BJP and feudal powers, to disrupt the SIT investigation. Attempts are being made to intimidate complainants and witnesses and to discredit them publicly,' the forum said in a statement issued following a meeting held on Thursday. The forum, which includes writers, lawyers, activists, and others, said that BJP leaders and their affiliates 'must stop threatening the complainants and interfering in the SIT investigation', adding that filing false cases or intimidating human rights defenders and complainants must stop. The meeting adopted several resolutions, including demands to reinvestigate four cases from 1979, 1986, and 2012. 'These, along with other similar unsolved cases, must be brought under the SIT purview. If this is not feasible, we demand a separate special investigation team for these cases,' the forum said. One resolution called for a comprehensive investigation 'into land grabbing and the involvement of powerful interests in suppressing landowners' rights' in Dharmasthala and surrounding villages in Dakshina Kannada district. The resolutions came in the wake of discussions that took place in the state legislature during the Monsoon Session where Opposition legislators alleged that the case was being used to defame Dharmasthala. The Government formed the SIT on July 19, after the whistleblower filed a police complaint stating that he had been forced to bury bodies of suspected sexual assault victims between 1998 and 2014 and warned against approaching the police.
Time of India
6 hours ago
- Time of India
Dharmasthala mass burial row: Court grant anticipatory bail to YouTuber Sameer MD; faces charges over AI video
Youtuber Sameer MD (File photo) NEW DELHI: A local court on Thursday granted anticipatory bail to YouTuber Sameer MD, who is facing criminal charges over content linked to the Dharmasthala mass burial case. Dharmasthala police had registered a case after Sameer allegedly caused public outrage by uploading an AI-generated video that contained fabricated details about the case. Dakshina Kannada SP Arun K said the video, reportedly generated using artificial intelligence, included fabricated details beyond those provided by the complainant witness in the official complaint and court proceedings. Sameer was booked under Sections 192 (provocation with intent to cause riot), 240 (false information) and 353(1)(b) (statements conducing to public mischief) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. The charges come against the backdrop of the ongoing SIT probe into the Dharmasthala case. In July 2025, a former sanitation worker alleged that, between 1995 and 2014, he was forced to bury or burn hundreds of bodies, many showing signs of violence and sexual assault. His claims triggered a state-level investigation, which is still underway. This is not the first time the YouTuber has landed in legal trouble. Earlier this year, a Bengaluru court issued notice in a Rs 10 crore defamation suit filed by Shri Kshetra Dharmasthala representatives D Harshendra Kumar and Nischal D, accusing him of deliberately targeting the institution over the unsolved 2008 college student murder case. Sameer, who commands a sizeable online following, has often argued that his work highlights issues neglected by mainstream media. Authorities, however, contend that his recent content amounted to provocation and misinformation, with the potential to disturb public order. While granting bail, the court directed him to cooperate with the investigation and refrain from making any inflammatory statements. Police sources added that monitoring of online content related to sensitive cases would continue to prevent the spread of misinformation and unrest.
Hindustan Times
9 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
Civil society group suggests SC-monitored SIT probe into Manipur violence cases
New Delhi, A civil society organisation comprising several prominent personalities that visited Manipur has recommended the setting up of a Special Investigating Team under the Supreme Court's supervision to probe all cases of ethnic violence in the northeastern state and the role of security forces. Civil society group suggests SC-monitored SIT probe into Manipur violence cases The 'Independent People's Tribunal on the Ongoing Ethnic Conflict in Manipur', headed by Kurian Joseph, former Judge of the Supreme Court, also recommended that the "hate propaganda and inflammatory speeches" that led to "incitement and escalation" of violence need to be prosecuted along with action against the authorities who "failed to exercise their powers to prevent it". The recommendations were made in a report prepared after a team of jurors and experts visited the conflict-affected areas in Manipur and held sittings in different districts of Manipur, including Bishnupur, Churachandpur, Imphal East, Imphal West, Kakching, Kangpokpi, Senapati, followed by sittings in Delhi, to record testimonies and receive submissions from various stakeholders, according to a press release. Additionally, testimonies and submissions were also received by jury members virtually. The team members also visited a number of relief camps in Manipur to talk to survivors, including children, women and elderly displaced on account of the conflict. Survivors and victims from different communities, service organisations providing relief to affected people, and organisations representing community interests, deposed before the tribunal. The team members also met with various government functionaries and officials of security forces. "The Supreme Court should appoint an SIT consisting of senior independent officers from states other than Manipur to monitor the cases arising out of the conflict. The SIT should be monitored by the Supreme Court, and the SIT should report to the Supreme Court every month," the press release said. The tribunal recommended that the Supreme Court-appointed SIT should investigate the role of the armed forces and other security forces in the conflict, and there should be a departmental enquiry as well as criminal action against those found to have violated the law in any way, not only by direct participation but also by omission to act appropriately. The SIT should investigate the incidents of hate speeches which occurred directly prior to and during the conflict and arrest and prosecute the perpetrators, including political figures and state functionaries, and the state government should provide adequate protection to all the witnesses. The tribunal also suggested that a permanent bench of the Manipur High Court should be established in the hill region, it said. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
