Shivraj Singh Chouhan Prepared to File Defamation Suit, Asks Congress to Prove Exam Scam Allegations

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Monday, declared that he would file a defamation suit against Congress for accusing him and his wife in the Madhya Pradesh Professional Examination Board (MPPEB) scam.

Chouhan dismissed allegations by Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee that his wife Sadhna Singh and other family members were involved in teacher's recruitment scam. Congress leader Shakeel Ahmed claimed that the Chief Exam Controller Pankaj Trivedi and other officials of MPPEB received 139 phone calls from CM's house, according to Zee News. 

His wife and other family members have been accused of recommending candidates for the contractual teachers' recruitment.

"Do they not attempt any fact checking before carrying out such ill-motivated baseless canards in media? Did relatives of my wife get selected in exam? Not even one. They say there were 139 phone calls from the CM house. Call details report show not even one call is from CM house," IBN quoted Chouhan.

He said that he has made all preparations to file the defamation case and would soon give his statement in the court. However, he did not mention any name that the suit would be against.

Cabinet Minister Uma Bharti was also attacked by Congress leaders for allegedly naming candidates for teacher's post. But STF cleared her name stating she had no role in it.

Congress leader Digvijay Singh agreed with Bharti's comment that the MPPEB scam is bigger than the fodder scam and said that this is just a sneak peak of a larger picture.

"I am happy that at least media has understood, till now they were not ready to listen to it. I am thankful that Hindi channels have taken it up. I will reveal some more pertaining to this scam within next few days. What you are seeing is just a tip of an iceberg. Union Water Resources Minister Uma Bharti had herself said that this scam is even bigger than the fodder scam," Business Standard quoted him.

He accused Chouhan government of  dragging Bharti's name into it and using her as a shield to protect themselves from being exposed. He has questioned him and his government for ignoring Bharti's demand for CBI probe.

The Chouhan government is being attacked for involvement in the MPPEB scam, including teacher's recruitment scam and opting for illegal means for admission in medical colleges through Pre-Medical Test (PMT). The teacher's recruitment exam and PMT, both are conducted by MPPEB.

The scam, which surfaced in 2013, involved many examination board officials, students and parents. Top officials, including former state technical education minister and BJP leader Laxmikant Sharma were arrested for alleged involvement in teacher's recruitment scam in the state.

STF, probing the MPPEB scam, has arrested many more officials for their involvement in manipulating the recruitment process for government jobs.

Additionally in PMT scam, MPPEB officials reportedly provided admissions to around 1,100 students illegally in 19 medical colleges across MP. STF has arrested around 400 people including parents and students accused of paying bribes to seek admission in medical colleges across the state, according the New Indian Express.