After journalist’s death, college dean with Vyapam link found dead in Delhi hotel

New Delhi/Bhopal, July 5

The Dean of a Jabalpur medical college, said to be probing fake examinees in the Vyapam scam, was found dead in a Delhi hotel today, adding yet another murky twist to the scandal.

The death of Dr Arun Sharma, Dean of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose Medical College in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, came to light a day after an investigative journalist with a leading Delhi-based news channel died under mysterious circumstances soon after he had interviewed parents of a girl found dead after her name figured in the massive admission and recruitment scandal.

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh spoke to MP Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and asked him to conduct a probe into the Akshay Singh’s death.

Police said Sharma's body was found at a hotel in south-west Delhi's Dwarka by the staff who opened the room using a duplicate key after he did not answer repeated knocks on the door.

An almost empty bottle of alcohol and vomit was found in the room. Forensic evidence has been collected and his body sent for post mortem.

Asked about reported links of Sharma with Vyapam scam, Joint Commissioner of Police (South West) Dipender Pathak said police is "covering all the angles" in its investigation.

Incidentally, Sharma was the second Dean of the medical college to have died under mysterious circumstances in the last one year. D K Sakalle, who was inquiring into admissions of candidates for whom proxies had allegedly appeared in the Pre-Medical Test, had been found burnt at his residence.

"Dr Sharma was found dead at his room in a hotel in Delhi. We are shocked at the death, He was a very close to Dr Sakalle," Indian Medical Association (IMA) Jabalpur district president Sudhir Tiwari told PTI.

Tiwari claimed Sharma had wept at the funeral pyre of Sakalle, claiming the latter had not committed suicide, as concluded by police after investigation.

"I suspect that Sharma too might have been killed," Tiwari said in Jabalpur, and said he had learnt two days back that the Dean had submitted a report relating to the Vyapam scam to the Special Task Force (STF) probing it.

Journalist dies on Vyapam trail

An investigative journalist with a TV channel Akshay Singh had died in Madhya Pradesh's Jhabua district yesterday soon after having interviewed the parents of the deceased girl Namrata Damor, whose body had been found under near railway tracks in Ujjain district on January 7, 2012.

Minutes after the interview, 38-year-old Akshay Singh started frothing at the mouth. He was rushed to civil hospital and later to a private hospital, but doctors failed to revive him. From there he was taken to another hospital in nearby Dahod in Gujarat, where he was declared brought dead.

The Madhya Pradesh government has agreed to get the viscera samples of Singh examined at AIIMS in Delhi as demanded by the latter’s kin.

“The government has decided to get the viscera samples (of Singh) tested at AIIMS Delhi as well as at Central Forensic Science Laboratory," state DGP Surendra Singh told PTI.

The demand for sending the viscera outside the state was made by Singh's sister in a letter to Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, official sources said.

Interestingly, India Today group, where Singh was employed, has also urged Madhya Pradesh government to send his viscera sample to a forensic laboratory outside the state, preferably AIIMS at Delhi, for a transparent examination.

The DGP confirmed that one of Singh's family members had requested the CM for getting the viscera samples examined outside the state.

Earlier, MP Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has said the government will write to the High Court-appointed SIT probing the Vyapam scam to "thoroughly investigate" the death of Singh, a journalist with the TV today group.

Addressing a press conference in Bhopal, Chouhan said his government will have no objection if the High Court ordered a probe into the scam by any other agency, including the CBI, as being demanded by the Congress.

He said the final report of the post-mortem examination, which was videographed, was awaited.

"Every death is unfortunate and sad. We feel all the deaths (in the scam) should be probed...The state government had earlier written to the high court for probing the deaths," he said, adding that he will be writing again.

Chouhan said the state government had no role in the investigation in the Vyapam scam that has seen a number of deaths of accused/witnesses and those associated with it, since the high court was monitoring the probe being carried out by the SIT constituted by it.

"The high court is monitoring the probe through the SIT constituted by it. The high court has said the probe is carrying on fine under its monitoring and there is no need for a CBI probe. The moment the high court decided to monitor it, that very day the state government's role ended in the scam. When the probe is being carried out under court monitoring, the state government cannot be above the court or the Supreme Court," he said.

Meanwhile, reacting to Sharma's death, Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh, who has petitioned the Supreme Court seeking a CBI probe into the scam, tweeted," Dr Arun Sharma Dean of Jabalpur Medical College found dead in a Delhi Hotel. His father NK Sharma was a Minister, MP and MPCC President."     

In another tweet, he said: "Incidentally Dr Sakalle earlier Dean of Medical College Jabalpur was found dead burnt in his residence lawns at 730 am 2 yrs back."

Singh further said, "He (Sakalle) was taking strong action against irregular admissions in Medical Colleges through Vyapam. No Govt said it was suicide."

Around a fortnight back, the SIT had submitted a report to the High Court wherein it said 23 accused and witnesses in the Vyapam scam had died "unnatural" deaths. Since then two more accused died under mysterious circumstances. Some reports put the figure at over 40.  ­

Singh's last rites performed; Cong, AAP seek thorough probe

The last rites of investigative TV journalist Akshay Singh, who was covering Vyapam scam, were held today in the capital where Rahul Gandhi and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal were among those present, amid mounting outrage over his mysterious death.

Delhi BJP chief Satish Upadhyaya, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, DPCC chief Ajay Maken and Congress leaders Digvijay Singh and Randeep Singh Surjewala also attended the cremation at Nigambodh Ghat in East Delhi. 

The Congress and Aam Aadmi Party mounted a sharp attack on the BJP government in MP demanding a thorough investigation into the deaths of a number of persons allegedly related to the Vyapam scam.

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi said he was “pained” to meet the family members of the journalist.

“Pained to meet the mother, father &sister of Akshay Singh. My prayers are with them in this time of terrible grief: Rahul Gandhi," said a tweet on his Twitter handle 'Office of RG'.

Kejriwal demanded steps to ensure that the guilty are punished and there are no more deaths.

“Vyapam scam n all deaths so far ought to be thoroughly investigated. Guilty must be punished. Something MUST be done to prevent more deaths,” the Delhi CM tweeted.

Amid doubts being raised over the circumstances of Singh's death, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has also favoured a “very fair inquiry” into the matter.

“Since various issues are being raised with respect to the circumstances of this death, it would be absolutely important that a very fair inquiry is held so that all doubts can be set at rest,” Jaitley said.

“My condolences on sad and untimely demise of young journalist Akshay Singh. My thoughts and prayers are with the bereaved family,” he also tweeted.

Aam Admi Party demanded removal of MP Governor Ram Naresh Yadav and also urged for a Supreme Court monitored probe in the scam and deaths by a Special Investigation Team (SIT). — PTI