Doomdooma: Seven people, including the principal of a school in Assam’s Tinsukia district, who were arrested over an alleged racket involving paid assistance and cheating during National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) examinations, were granted bail by the Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) court on Friday.
The accused were arrested on November 5 after a surprise police inspection at Bhawati Bhagwan DAV Shiksha Niketan, where a NIOS examination was underway. The operation was led by a police team headed by Sadar police station Officer-in-Charge Purunjay Bora.
The arrested persons include the school’s principal, Raghav Prasad Rai, and six others identified as Sunil Kumar Verma, Ajit Jain, Biki Prasad, Dipu Barman, Suresh Giri and Shubhnath Bhagat.
Advocate Buddhinath Prajapati, who represented Rai and another accused, Sunil Verma, said the court granted bail in view of a recent Supreme Court order concerning the calculation of the 24-hour period for producing an arrested person before a magistrate.
According to Prajapati, the Supreme Court, in an order dated November 5, clarified that the 24-hour period begins from the time a person is taken into custody, rather than from the time of formal arrest.
The case stems from allegations that the accused collected between Rs 15,000 and Rs 25,000 from candidates, promising to help them pass the examinations. They were also suspected of allowing examinees to use unfair means or providing assistance inside the examination centre.
The allegations came to light during the unannounced inspection on Thursday, when the examination was in progress. Following the registration of an FIR, the seven accused were produced before the court on Friday.
The investigation is expected to examine the alleged financial transactions, the possible involvement of other individuals associated with the examination centre and whether similar practices were taking place at other NIOS examination centres in Tinsukia district.
The grant of bail does not determine the merits of the allegations, which remain subject to investigation and judicial scrutiny. The police and prosecution were yet to issue an official response on the bail order or the next steps in the case.