In a major twist in the Shalarth ID scam involving fraudulent teacher appointments in Nagpur, the Cyber Police on Thursday night arrested Chintaman Vanjari—the official who had been leading the inquiry into the scam—for his alleged role in the fraud.
Vanjari currently holds the position of divisional chairperson with the state education board.
Vanjari’s arrest marks a significant turning point in the ongoing investigation. The action against him comes just a day after the arrest of Laxman Upasrao Mangham, a clerk in the office of the Deputy Director of Education, for allegedly generating fake Shalarth IDs. Investigators stated that information revealed during Mangham’s interrogation brought Vanjari’s name into focus. He had also reportedly been named during earlier questioning of other accused individuals in the case.
The scam, which is believed to have been operating since 2019, involved the illegal creation of Shalarth IDs—digital profiles used to process salary payments—for ineligible teaching and non-teaching staff in Nagpur district. Several of these appointments were made despite a freeze on government recruitment at the time.
The scam surfaced after Ravindra Dnyaneshwar Patil, a junior administrative officer, lodged a formal complaint with the Cyber Police on March 12—reportedly acting on the instructions of then Divisional Deputy Director Ulhas Narad. In response, a seven-member committee was formed under Narad’s leadership to investigate the misuse of Shalarth IDs. However, the investigation took a turn on April 11 when Narad himself was arrested for allegedly creating fake Shalarth IDs.
Following Narad’s arrest, the investigation was handed over to a new committee led by education department officer Madhuri Savarkar. However, the inquiry was suddenly discontinued in April without explanation, and Chintaman Vanjari was appointed to lead the probe. In February, Vanjari submitted a report to the education commissioner identifying 244 suspicious appointments, which prompted deeper investigation.
In April, the state government constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to examine how the fake identities were uploaded to the Shalarth portal to facilitate salary disbursements for ineligible teaching and non-teaching staff. “This case has exposed serious lapses and collusion within the education department,” a senior officer from the SIT said. “We are closing in on the main masterminds.”
Police suspect that forged documents and signatures, including those of the late education officer Someshwar Naitam, were used to fraudulently appoint teachers between 2010 and 2014, while their Shalarth IDs were created years later to enable salary payments. The SIT is now focusing its investigation on another senior officer already under suspicion, and more arrests are expected in the coming days.
👉 Click here to read the latest Gujarat news on TheLiveAhmedabad.com