Selected for medical studies, Sheetal’s desire to help her parents lands her in lockup

SYED AMJAD SHAH

Jammu, Aug 22: Brilliant in studies, Sheetal Gupta-one among the seven imposters arrested by police yesterday from an examination centre in Jammu University-has qualified the medical entrance exams at her home city Bhopal where she was likely to get admission in one of the two reputed government medical colleges.

Belonging to a highly qualified family, Sheetal is the youngest among four siblings and is good at studies since her childhood, she told her interrogators, adding, her father Ashok Kumar Gupta of Malviya Nagar (Bhopal) was a retiree from a private company.

“Her elder brother is a Master in Business Administration (MBA), her sister is working as an engineer in a private company, while another is also pursuing higher studies,” informed she to police.

Since her family had spent huge amount on her studies, sources said that Sheetal had a desire to help her family financially and pursue further studies on her own.

This desire put the sober and intelligent girl behind the bars and now she is facing charges under 419, 420, 2/5 of prevention of unfair means in examination here in Jammu.

Sources said that the unfortunate girl met the king pin Kunj Behari (agent) last year and both remained in frequent contact with each other on mobile phone, since then.

“The agent-Kunj Behari- who was also taking tuitions for PMT was seeking help from her (Sheetal) concerning his studies,” sources said, while saying that he was the resident of Delhi.

Following the telephonic relations, the innocent looking girl Sheetal trusted the offer of agent Kunj Behari to participate on the entrance test for private medical collage in Jammu on behalf of another student.

“The agent had promised her to pay Rs 15, 000 after the result, while all the travel and accommodation expenses will be her own,” the sources said.

Initially, the girl became suspicious and denied. “He (agent), however, assured her that nothing wrong will happen,” the sources said.

Telling her parents that she (Sheetal) has been going to pay obeisance at Vaishno Devi Shrine in Katra alongwith her friends, sources said: “She left Bhopal in Jammu Tawi Express and reached next morning at Jammu Railway Station at around 5.30 am- on the day of examination (August 21).”

The agent received her at the Jammu Railway Station, the distressed girl told her interrogators. Interestingly, she was unaware about the student on whose behalf she was appearing in the examination.

However, she was arrested following the complaint by the alert invigilators of Jammu University to police after they found that she was appearing for Arish Kiran daughter of Ajit Kumar of Janipur. She was arrested alongwith six others.

Reliable sources said that agents are the same but every year new medical students became their target. Without the consequences, such medical students fall in the trap of the agents and take the risk of taking on medical examination and other competitive examination on the behalf of other students.

Notably, at least seven persons, including two girls were arrested by police for appearing as proxy candidates in Acharya Shri College of Medical Sciences and hospital (ASCOMS), Sidhra MBBA/BDS entrance examination.

While seven impersonators fell in police net, their agents escaped soon after police unearthed the syndicate arrested.

Police also conducted raid at Diamond hotel in Jewel area and seized the entry register, wherein, the agent Kunj Behari was putting up.