The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has tightened its grip after complaints of widespread corruption and rigging in the Pharmacy Council of India (PCI), the sole authority responsible for giving recognition to pharma colleges across the country.
Last week, the CBI raided the bungalow of PCI president Montu Patel in Gandhinagar, amid accusations that he and his associates embezzled over Rs 5,400 crore by granting approvals for colleges in exchange for bribes. He is now on the run.
Patel allegedly renewed the validity of diploma colleges for Rs 8 lakh for a year, and Rs 15 lakh for B Pharma institutions. Using proceeds of the crime, his driver, and Jashu Chaudhary, a Congress leader and his business partner, had allegedly acquired several acres of land in Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh, sources say.
There are over 12,000 pharmacy colleges across the country run by the PCI. The CBI is now probing how 870 of them were given approval in just 13 days during 2023-24, with Patel at the centre of this investigation. He is also accused of using money power to win the PCI's internal elections.
Who is Montu Patel?
Montu Kumar Patel, 35, comes from a humble background. After completing graduation and post-graduation from a local college in his village, he entered the Pharmacy Council politics. His first stint was in the Gujarat Pharmacy Council, after which he moved to the Pharmacy Council of India, winning elections unopposed from the ABVP panel.
Contacts across party lines had helped him rise through the ranks. He has been the PCI chief for the last three years. Reports suggest that he used all sorts of tricks to ensure he bagged the top post, sidelining his close acquaintances and rigging the elections.
Charges Against Patel
Patel is being probed for hasty recognitions given to colleges, allegedly due to huge sums being paid as bribes. The probe has found that Patel and his aides granted affiliation to such colleges that lacked adequate infrastructure, qualified staff, and students.
He is also being investigated for not leaving his post after losing the Gujarat Pharmacy Council elections and nominating himself from a Union territory. He allegedly silenced those who had helped him retain his position.
The CBI is conducting a separate probe into allegations that he had booked rooms worth Rs 2.75 lakh at a Delhi hotel to host his voters ahead of the PCI elections. After winning, he had strengthened his hold by appointing his associates to key roles in the Council and by giving extensive approval rights to selected individuals.
Patel was also involved in the IELTS scam. His wife, Khushboo Vora, was accused of appearing in the IELTS exams for other candidates. She had taken Rs 30 lakh from one such candidate. They had allegedly gathered a fortune worth Rs 300 crore this way.
from NDTV News- Special https://ift.tt/8lM7gbk
Posts
