The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) conducted raids at National Defence Academy (NDA) campus in Pune on Wednesday and booked five faculty members, as well as unidentified others, for alleged irregularities in the selection and appointment of teaching staff.
The agency has booked principal Om Prakash Shukla, along with a professor of political science, the head of department and an assistant professor in the chemistry department, and an assistant professor in the mathematics department, for alleged criminal conspiracy, cheating and provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
Shukla was appointed principal of the elite armed forces training centre in Khadakwasla, Pune, in 2011.
Searches are going on at the official and residential premises of the accused persons, officials said.
“We registered the FIR based on a complaint about irregularities in the selection/ appointment to different posts of teaching faculty in NDA,” a CBI official said.
The appointment of civilian academic officers, including principal, vice principal, professor and assistant professor at the NDA, is done through the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC).
The UPSC publishes an advertisement inviting applications in which qualification criteria are listed. Two important criteria are Academic Performance Indicator (API) points and academic experience.
At least 15 such appointments have been made since 2007, as per media reports.
As per The Indian Express news report, in 2012, the CBI had discovered a scam in the recruitment of ‘Class C’ employees for the academy. The agency is also investigating a case of alleged malpractices in allotment of contract for the purchase of branded clothing for cadets, which involved senior officers of the academy.