Shillong : Chandra Mohan Jha, an independent candidate contesting the Lok Sabha polls from Bihar’s Jhanjarpur constituency and wanted by Meghalaya Police for fraud and selling fake certificates, was Tuesday arrested in Bihar, officials said.
“Our CID (Criminal Investigation Department) team along with Bihar Police arrested Jha from Madhubani during his campaign,” Meghalaya Director General of Police Peter Hanaman told IANS.
“He (Jha) is currently in custody of Bihar Police. We will seek from the court there (Bihar) his transit remand to Meghalaya for further investigation into criminal charges filed against him,” Hanaman said.
CMJ University, the first private university in Shillong, created a record of sorts by awarding PhD degrees to 434 candidates in the 2012-13 academic year, and enrolled 490 students for the PhD programme for 2012-2013, even as only 10 of its faculty members have doctorates.
Each student desiring to pursue a PhD programme was asked to pay Rs.1.27 lakh.
Jha, vice chancellor of the university, is accused of fraud, forgery and selling fake degree certificates to students from various parts of the country.
He was evading arrest after the Supreme Court cancelled his anticipatory bail March 7.
Meghalaya’s CID, which is investigating the alleged lapses of the university, has unearthed a number of irregularities in its functioning and registered criminal cases against Jha under various sections of the Indian Penal Code.
Earlier, the CID also arrested several people, including university registrar Mrinal Kanti Deb, and his deputy Premlal Rai, human resource manager Juban Kharpuri, on charges of fraud and cheating.
The Meghalaya government has also dissolved the CMJ University following the Supreme Court directive to take appropriate action.
“The government has dissolved CMJ University based on the Supreme Court order. Moreover, the university’s replies to the government show cause notices were found not tenable,” P.K. Srivastava, principal secretary in-charge education, told IANS.
“The evidence as to its mismanagement, maladministration, indiscipline, fraudulent intent and failure in the accomplishment of the objectives of the university is too overwhelming,” he said.