The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has registered a First Information Report (FIR) concerning the discovery of four lakh (400,000) fake students enrolled in Haryana government schools, as reported by officials. The case, which dates back to 2016, was transferred to the CBI following an order from the Punjab and Haryana High Court on November 2, 2019.
A data verification exercise in the year 2016 that had revealed a major discrepancy in student numbers had brought the case in the limelight initially. Official records indicated that there were 22 lakh (2.2 million) students enrolled in various government schools across Haryana. Only as many as eighteen lakh (1.8 million) students, however, were found to be attending the schools which left a huge gap of approximately four lakh students who were later identified to be fake admissions.
This fraudulent activity raised serious concerns as various benefits and incentives, such as those provided to students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds and the mid-day meal scheme, were being misappropriated. The information about the misuse of funds meant for the welfare of these students were put forth in the High Court that had led to the suspicion that funds were being siphoned off for these non-existent students.
The High court instructed the state vigilance bureau to appoint a senior official to investigate the matter thoroughly. The bench lay emphasis on the need to identify the ones responsible and take appropriate action to serve a deterrent against such malpractices. Upon the findings of the vigilance bureau seven FIRs were registered within the state initially.
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However, the investigation’s progress was deemed slow, prompting the High Court to transfer the probe to the CBI for a more efficient and comprehensive investigation. The High Court ordered the state vigilance bureau to hand over all relevant documents to the CBI within a week of the November 2019 order and instructed the CBI to submit a status report within three months.
Despite the CBI’s request to transfer the investigation back to the state police, stating that they needed extensive manpower, the Supreme Court dismissed the petition. Consequently, the CBI officially registered the FIR.
