JAIPUR: As the Opposition BJP in Rajasthan is going aggressive with their demand of CBI probe into the REET paper leak 'scandal', there are silent whispers in the political corridors that REET scandal can be a repeat of JBT scam in Haryana due to which the state's former Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala, who was also handling the Education Ministry then, was sentenced to ten years in prison by a special CBI court.
Satish Poonia, BJP state president, told IANS, "What JBT was in Haryana is REET in Rajasthan. Honest aspirants who worked hard couldn't get jobs as many senior officials and ministers collected huge funds to get fake candidates selected. That's the reason we are demanding a CBI probe into it."
"Can SOG (special operations group) investigate any minister or any other senior leader who is found guilty? Till date, the SOG has probed the issue within a limit and it is a well known fact that it cannot cross its line, " he added.
The state government has cancelled the REET level 2 exam and sacked the RBSE chairman after it was proved that the papers were stolen from the education complex.
Leader of Opposition Gulabchand Kataria and Rajya Sabha MP Kirorilal Meena made serious allegations against an organisation, named Rajiv Gandhi Study Circle (RGSC) and have alleged that people associated with it are the masterminds of the crime.
"State Minister, Subhash Garg is the national coordinator of the organisation. Jaroli, sacked as RBSE chairman, is a member of its advisory committee. Pradeep Parashar appointed as coordinator for REET 2021 from Jaipur district is regional coordinator, the Chief Minister is a chairman for the NGO. Hence, it is difficult for the SOG to undertake a thorough investigations in a transparent manner and the probe should be handed over to the CBI, " BJP leader Kataria said.
Meanwhile, Poonia said, "We are fully prepared to fight a battle from road to the Vidhan Sabha, demanding a CBI inquiry into the REET paper leak case."
The BJP MLAs have been raising CBI probe since the first day of the budget session which started on February 9. They stood for almost 1 hour with placards in their hands pressing for their demand of CBI probe into the 'scandal'.
Similarly, on the second day of the session, the Opposition protested again and four BJP MLAs were suspended from the Assembly for the rest of the session for "creating ruckus" in the House.
On third day, on Friday, suspended BJP MLAs staged a sit-in at the gate of the Assembly to protest the suspension and demanded a CBI inquiry into the paper leak.
"REET case is related to 26 lakh youths and 1 crore people. This is the biggest issue of the state and the country. The BJP has decided that nothing less than a CBI inquiry on this issue is acceptable, " said suspended MLA Madan Dilawar, adding that the "big fishes" are roaming outside. The Chief Ministers and the ministers associated with RGSC should be investigated, he added.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot argued saying, "The proposed non-Secretariat clerk exam scheduled for February 13 in Gujarat has been postponed. This exam has been postponed thrice in four years. I have said earlier also that organised gangs are involved in paper leaks, copying, etc in different states and are causing problems in all examinations. This should be a matter of concern for the Central and state governments."
"The state agencies investigated the paper leaks within the states. BJP should tell why the investigation of all these recruitments was not given to CBI, " he asserted.
"The REET Level 2 exam was cancelled as BJP was instigating youths. Now, the BJP does not want to allow discussion on the development issues by disrupting the proceedings of the Assembly, " Gehlot said, adding that his government is coming up with a bill for strict laws against paper leaks, copying and other irregularities in examinations.
Meanwhile, a PIL has been filed before the Rajasthan High Court seeking to cancel the REET examination which was conducted on September 26, 2021. In the present matter, the bench has listed the matter for February 28.
The plea claimed that almost 16.51 lakh candidates applied for over 32, 000 seats but due to the paper leak, the reliability of the exam has become doubtful and candidates who appeared in the examination are "feeling cheated".
"The question paper was found unsealed at various examination centres and was available in the mobile phones of some candidates' relatives who are part of the government machinery. It clearly indicates the involvement of the government machinery, " the plea further alleged, adding that it has not just played with asirants' future but also "misused" the public money.