In a historic and unprecedented ruling, a special court in Guwahati today convicted 29 Agriculture Development Officers (ADOs) in connection with the Assam Public Service Commission (APSC) Agriculture Development Officer (ADO) recruitment scam, along with APSC members Rakesh Kumar Paul, Basanta Kumar Doley, and Samedur Rahman. This is the first time in Assam's history that such a large number of officers have been sentenced to prison on the same day for corruption while serving as public servants.
The case centers on the fraudulent ADO recruitment process conducted in 2013 during Rakesh Paul's tenure as Chairman of the APSC. The accused had obtained their positions in exchange for bribes. Out of the 44 individuals charged, the court acquitted 11 due to insufficient documentary evidence. The acquitted individuals include Vikash Pincha, Kunal Das, and Kaushik Kalita, who served as middlemen, as well as Syed Musharraf Hussain (APSC employee), Beauty Gogoi, Phiruj Moran, Jyotiban Dutta, Saijali Johori, Dhritiman Roy, Mousumi Saikia, and Boichitra Hakmaosa, who were candidates.
The special court judge, Deepak Thakuria, has mandated judicial custody for all 29 convicted officials. The defendants, who once held esteemed positions in the state's agricultural development sector, broke down in tears upon hearing the verdict. The convicted officials are Mrigen Haloi, Phanindra Saikia, Pranab Bharali, Jyotirekha Das, Kobin Killingpi, Preeti Das, Alok Kumar Mali, Biswajit Doley, Kesabananda Borah, Bornali Medhi, Bipul Kumar Deka, Sweety Borah Hazarika, Satyanath Deka, Kamal Krishna Das, Rituraj Sonowal, Anjan Loying, Priyanka Bora, Rosheshwar Timung, Sanghamitra Shyam, Bidyut Das, Alpona Deori, Jayanta Jeet Das, Dipankar Borik, Raushan Roufi, Pranjal Barman, Shakeel Aziz Hoque, Kalyan Sharma, and Mofida Begum Saikia. They were convicted under Bhangagarh P.S. Case No. 159/2017, which pertains to charges under Section 120(B)/420/468 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) regarding irregularities in the ADO Examination conducted by the APSC. Additionally, Rakesh Kumar Paul, Basanta Kumar Doley, and Samedur Rahman were also convicted under Section 7/13(1)(a)(d)(iii)/13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
The convicted officials, who were responsible for the agricultural development of Assam's poor farmers, will now face imprisonment. The court's verdict marks a significant step in addressing corruption within public service, revealing how individuals who failed to pass the recruitment tests exploited their positions for monetary gain.
The special judge, Deepak Thakuria, will soon announce the quantum of the sentences. The case, initially registered on August 17, 2017, against Rakesh Paul and his accomplices at Bhangagarh police station following an FIR by job-seeker Bedanta Bikash Das, concluded after a protracted trial spanning six-and-a-half years.
Additionally, the court has ordered the scrapping of the entire recruitment process for ADOs and referred the matter to the state government for further action. Due to the lengthy and complex nature of the verdict, the court has delayed the announcement of the specific sentences.