Congress in Kerala seeks probe into alleged irregularities in NEET 2024 results
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): The Congress in Kerala on Saturday demanded a comprehensive investigation into the allegations of irregularities in NEET 2024 results.
The grand old party said the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) results have raised concerns about the authenticity of the national exam for medical courses, with many students casting doubt on the procedure.
In a letter sent to the Centre, Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly V D Satheesan said many students from Kerala have personally expressed concerns about the NEET exam results.
"I write to demand a comprehensive investigation into the suspicious results of the recently published NEET results for 2024," the Congress leader said in the letter sent to the secretaries of the departments of the Higher Education and Health and Family Welfare of the union government.
He said it was "extremely alarming" to see that 67 students received full marks, with eight of them coming from the same examination centre.
"It should be noted that this figure is just two in 2023 and four in 2022. Furthermore, students received 719 and 718 marks out of 720, which is not theoretically achievable given the NEET exam format."
The fact that the results were announced 10 days before the proposed date casts "considerable doubt" on the validity of the valuation procedure.
"The questionable results have added credence to the earlier-surfaced allegations regarding the NEET question paper leak. I regret to inform you (the Centre) that any malpractice in NEET results will undermine the hopes and dreams of thousands of qualified students," the LoP said.
Ineligible candidates would degrade the quality of our healthcare system in the long run, which is deemed to be a great injustice to the generations to come, he added.
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ED arrests Sandeepa Virk, 'cosmetologist' for alleged money laundering
New Delhi, Aug 13 (PTI): The Enforcement Directorate said on Wednesday it has arrested a woman, who claims to be an actor and a cosmetologist, under the anti-money laundering law in a case of alleged fraud and misrepresentation.
The agency said the purported links of the woman, Sandeepa Virk, with a Reliance Group executive, Angarai Natarajan Sethuraman (President, Corporate Affairs), are also under its scanner. Sethuraman, in a statement, denied any connection with Virk or any transactions related to her.
Virk was taken into custody under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) on Tuesday after searches were conducted against her and her associates in Delhi and Mumbai over the last two days.
A special court sent her to the ED's custody till August 14, the agency said. The woman claims to be the owner of a skin care products selling website named hyboocare.com, which the ED claimed was a "front" for money laundering.
She and her associates are being probed for allegedly exerting undue influence through "misrepresentation" and "defrauding" individuals by soliciting money under false pretences.
According to an Instagram ID of Virk, she is an actor and entrepreneur and the founder of the said website.
The federal agency said in a statement that the woman was also "in touch with" Sethuraman, former director of erstwhile Reliance Capital Limited.
She was communicating with him regarding "illegal liaisoning", the ED claimed, adding that the searches at Sethuraman's residence "confirmed" these allegations.
"Besides, diversion of funds for personal benefit has also been unearthed during the course of the search action," it said.
The ED alleged that public money worth about Rs 18 crore belonging to Reliance Commercial Finance Limited (RCFL) was disbursed to Sethuraman in 2018 by "flouting" prudent lending norms.
The funds were lent under terms that allowed a deferment of the principal amount as well as the interest, with multiple waivers granted and no due diligence conducted, it said.
The ED claimed that besides this, a home loan of Rs 22 crore was provided by Reliance Capital Limited by "violating" the prudential norms. "A large part of these loans are seen to have been eventually siphoned off and remained unpaid," it alleged.
Sethuraman, in a statement, dismissed the allegations as "baseless". He denied any connection with Virk or any transactions related to her.
Detailing about Virk's web portal, the agency said it purportedly sold FDA-approved beauty products. However, the ED said the products listed on the website have been found to be non-existent and the portal lacks a user registration option and is plagued by persistent payment gateway issues.
A scrutiny of the website uncovered minimal social-media engagement, an inactive WhatsApp contact number and an absence of transparent organisational details, all of which reinforce the finding of "non-genuine" commercial activity, the ED claimed.
"These factors, including limited product range, inflated pricing, false claims of FDA approval and technical inconsistencies, indicate that the website serves as a front for laundering funds," it said.
Another social media-hosted bio data of the woman said she is a certified cosmetologist.
The ED said several "incriminating" documents were seized during the searches and the statement of a man named Farrukh Ali, stated to be an associate of Virk, was recorded.
The money-laundering case stems from an FIR lodged by the Punjab Police.
Sethuraman said that the home loan he received from Reliance Capital was granted following due process and was secured by the property offered as collateral.
