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Lucknow, Aug. 23 (IANS): The BJP has suspended its leader Sanjeev Gupta, whose son Sachin Gupta is absconding after being named as an accused in the printing of duplicate NCERT books worth INR 35 crore.
While 12 people have so far been arrested by the Uttar Pradesh Police in connection with this case, Gupta remains at large. An FIR has been registered against Sachin Gupta.
Special Task Force Sub-Inspector Sanjay Solanki has also filed a case against Sachin Gupta and five others at the Partapur police station.
The scam was reportedly discovered in Meerut district by the Special Task Force (STF).
Brajesh Kumar Singh, the STF DSP said that Sachin Gupta is the owner of a warehouse at Acchonda in Partapur and a printing press at Mohkampur.
"He is absconding at the moment and efforts are being made to arrest him. Shortly after the raid, police officers spoke to Sachin over the phone and he said that he was coming with the papers of books, but did not come later and also switched off his mobile," he said.
The probe, so far, has unearthed that the duplicate books were printed and supplied in seven states, including Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Haryana, and Delhi.
The fake NCERT books were also of about 364 types, including Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics books for Classes 9 to 12.
Earlier too, Sachin Gupta was involved in printing fake Uttar Pradesh Board books. It remains unclear if any action was taken in the previous instance.
The genuine NCERT books are only printed in Delhi, and available to retailers at a commission of 15 per cent. Besides, in order to procure the genuine books, retailers have to pay the full amount in advance.
The duplicate books, on the other hand, are available at 30 per cent commission and no advance payment is needed to purchase them.
Former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav, meanwhile, took to Twitter to ask the BJP to give its leaders a lesson in moral education.