In a significant crackdown, the Rajasthan Police apprehended three individuals, including the Vice Chancellor (VC) of JS University in Firozabad, Uttar Pradesh, Sukesh Yadav, for their involvement in a fake degree scandal. Yadav was arrested at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport on Saturday as he attempted to flee the country. Along with Yadav, Nandan Mishra, the university’s Registrar, and Ajay Bharadwaj, a broker, were also detained for their roles in the illegal operation.
The accused were involved in issuing fake and backdated Bachelor of Physical Education (BPEd) degrees, which enabled 254 candidates to secure jobs as physical education teachers in Rajasthan’s schools in 2022. Following a police complaint, an investigation was launched, and the case was transferred to the Special Operations Group (SOG) of Rajasthan Police.
During the investigation, it was revealed that over 2,000 fake degrees were issued by the university in just one year. SOG ADG VK Singh confirmed the arrest and investigation of the trio, adding that Yadav’s attempt to flee the country was a critical lead. Bharadwaj is also connected to another fake degree scam in Churu related to OPJS University.
The recruitment of physical education teachers in 2022 was marred by allegations of fake qualifications. It was later discovered that many candidates had altered the names of their degree-awarding universities to JS University in order to qualify for the recruitment.
