Vyapam scam: Man gets five years of rigorous imprisonment

The man, identified as Manish Sinha, was awarded sentence under relevant sections of the Madhya Pradesh Recognised Examinations Act and under IPC sections 420 (cheating) and 467 (forgery). 

The convict hails from Patna in Bihar. 

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which is probing the Vyapam scam, proved in the court that Sinha had appeared for the Pre-Medical Test (PMT)-2004 at a centre in Khandwa in MP in the name of Sant Kumar Trivedia, a resident of Gwalior. 

Special public prosecutor Ranjan Sharma, while arguing the case on behalf of the CBI, produced 21 witnesses in the matter. 

The wrongdoing came to light when an invigilator at the examination centre found that the admit-card carried the name of Trivedia, but the photo pasted on it did not match that of Sinha''s face. 

According to the prosecution, Sinha had appeared for the examination for monetary consideration. 

The Vyapam scam refers to irregularities in exams held by the Madhya Pradesh Professional Examination Board, also called Vyavasayik Pareeksha Mandal or Vyapam, for admission in professional courses and state services. 

Multiple criminal cases related to the scam have been filed in different parts of the state. 

Initially, a special task force of the state police had investigated the scam. In 2016, the Supreme Court had directed the CBI to investigate the scandal.