By Shishir Prashant 
PrashantNews
The Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the alleged MBBS admission racket in Uttarakhand has arrested a third accused, with the investigation now focusing on the network that allegedly arranged forged freedom fighter dependent certificates to secure medical seats.
The latest arrest is that of Dheeraj Kumar Srivastava, 37, a resident of PipLani in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh. He was arrested from Thano Road in Dehradun on Thursday, according to Senior Superintendent of Police Pramendra Singh Dobal.
Srivastava’s name allegedly surfaced during the interrogation of Rupesh Pandit, who was arrested on September 21 and is being described by police as the alleged mastermind of the racket. Pandit and Arvind Kumar, the father of an MBBS aspirant, were the first two arrests in the case.
Police said around Rs 5.5 lakh was recovered from Srivastava’s vehicle. According to the police, the money was allegedly paid to him by Pandit in connection with arranging MBBS admissions under the Freedom Fighter Dependent quota.
During questioning, Srivastava allegedly told investigators that he operated an office in Bhopal’s Piplani area under the name “MBBS Way”, through which he facilitated admissions on commission to various private universities for courses including MBBS, BTech, BCA, BBA and BCom.
Police said Srivastava had met Pandit in Uttarkashi around two years ago and the two remained in contact thereafter.
According to Dobal, Arvind Kumar had approached Pandit seeking MBBS admission for his daughter and two children of acquaintances. Pandit subsequently contacted Srivastava, who allegedly approached another person familiar with the process of admissions under the freedom fighter dependent quota in Uttarakhand.
Police allege that Srivastava, Pandit and their associates subsequently arranged forged documents for three candidates and obtained fake certificates, which were then used to secure MBBS admissions in different medical colleges in Uttarakhand.
Police had earlier said Pandit was allegedly operating an admission consultancy from Meerut and that a deal of Rs 45 lakh per candidate had been struck for MBBS admission under the quota. Of this, Rs 20 lakh was allegedly taken in advance. Police also recovered Rs 8 lakh from Pandit’s residence in Meerut, allegedly paid for preparing the fake certificates.
The investigation has also led to departmental action against two revenue sub-inspectors, Jagdish Rathore and Dimple, who were suspended on the orders of Dehradun District Magistrate Ashish Chauhan following a preliminary inquiry.
The two officials have been accused of negligence in the verification of documents before the disputed certificates were issued.
The district administration’s departmental inquiry was conducted separately from the police investigation. According to reports, the inquiry committee recommended their suspension after finding lapses in the verification process. The role of other officials, including an SDM-level officer, is also being examined.
The SIT, headed by SP (Rural) Jaya Baloni, has examined the candidates’ documents and found discrepancies in the addresses mentioned in their applications. Investigators then obtained admission-related records from the medical institutions and traced the candidates’ actual addresses.
The government has meanwhile widened scrutiny of reservation-related documents following the revelations. Authorities have cancelled admissions/certificates in cases where documents were found to be fraudulent, while the Medical Education Department has directed verification of relevant certificates submitted during the counselling process.
The SIT is now investigating the alleged role of intermediaries, applicants, parents and government personnel and is examining whether the racket extended beyond the three candidates initially identified. Police teams have also been conducting searches outside Uttarakhand as the investigation expands.