Court directs Crime Branch to investigate role of Education Ministers, Secretaries, Chairmen JKBOSE

ETT Institutes Permission Scam in J&K

STATE TIMES NEWS

JAMMU: In an unprecedented scam in field of education in J&K, called ETT Colleges Scam, Special Anti Corruption Court Jammu has directed Crime Branch, Jammu for further investigation in the case.
In his findings, the Special Judge Anti Corruption Court Jammu, Tahir Khurshid Raina has passed strictures against Investigation Officer of the case and the then SSP Crime, who was acting as SHO Police Station Crime Branch Jammu, under whose supervision this sham and shoddy investigation was done, court observed.
Even directions of High Court at Srinagar, passed in the PIL relating to investigation of this case, have been violated with impunity by the crime branch, observed the Court. While directing further investigation, Court observed that investigate roles of successive Ministers of Education after 2000, including Secretaries Education & Chairmen JKBOSE and further Investigation be done by an IPS officer not below rank of SSP and status report be filed before the court fortnightly and investigation should be completed within two months.
This scam became subject matter of investigation on the communication of the then Chairman JKBOSE in 2013, which resulted into registration of two FIRs 36/2013 at Police Station Crime branch Jammu and FIR 27/ 2013 at Police Station Crime Branch, Srinagar under sections 420, 468 , 471 , 120-B of RPC read with 5(2) PC Act and investigation started.
The main charge-sheet was filed in Special Anti-Corruption court, Jammu in 2015 against Bashir Ahmed Dar , the then Director Academics, JKBOSE in 2002- 04 and five other accused who were beneficiaries (promoters/owners of ETT institutes). Simultaneously Crime branch Jammu filed few more supplementary charge sheets based on academic sessions 2005- 07, 2007-09 etc which are pending disposal.
The court after hearing preliminary arguments deferred framing of the charge in the case and observed that for doing substantial justice in the case, further investigation in the case is inevitable. Accordingly, it directed so to be completed within two months. Special DG Crime, UT of J&K has been directed to constitute a SIT for further investigation.
As observed in the order, the foundation of this unprecedented fraud in the field of education dates back to 2002/2003 when the then Director Academics Bashir Ahmed Dar and Dy Director academics R K Jalali (now expired) issued permissions to 22 institutes to run ETT course by referring to emergency powers of the Chairman BOSE as envisaged under section 13(iv) of Board of School Education Act 1975. All these permissions were issued without any policy in place, guidelines and without conducting any inspections. In 2003, government had issued order whereby a committee was constituted to deal with any application of any promoter for opening ETT. Court observed that if government had constituted committee for accord of NOCs for establishing ETT , then how come Board members, including Secretary Education accorded 22 permissions by illegally invoking emergency powers of the Chairman. Court further observed that permission of opening any such training school for teachers was in exclusive domain of the government under section 11 read with sec 2(n)(i) of the School Education Act 2002. Thereafter a flood gate of such institutes got opened in length and breadth of the state which at the time of their closure were around 499. However, when a complete mess was noticed in 2007 in said institutes, a committee was constituted. Later another committee was constituted in 2010 in Jammu division led by A K Sen, the then Director Academics BOSE. As per report, he inspected randomly 40 such institutes in 5 districts of Jammu province like Jammu, Kathua, Samba, Reasi and Rajouri. He made startling observations that no such institutions virtually existed on ground and it is mockery of the things when one finds degrees on sale in J&K. However, the scam surfaced when a one man enquiry committee, constituted on the direction of the High Court in a public interest litigation filed at Srinagar bench against said ETT institutes submitted its report to the then Chairman JKBOSE in 2011. It was observed that a huge scandal in the history of J&K, where hundreds of crores of rupees are given and taken as bribe and almost all concerned persons are involved in loot. Based on one man enquiry report, two FIRs got registered at Srinagar and Jammu and investigation commenced. The High Court was also monitoring the said investigation and has passed catena of directions to ensure fair and comprehensive investigation in the case which was finally closed in the year 2019 on account of filing of charge-sheets in the case at Srinagar and Jammu.
In this court the main charge-sheet was filed in 2015, based on 2002 – 05 admission session followed by supplementary charge-sheets based on session wise admissions. Now after having a preliminary hearing on the framing of charge, the court observed umpteen lapses in the charge-sheet which inevitably warrant further investigation in the case for doing complete justice.