Vyapam scam whistleblower Anand Rai to join Congress today

Anand Rai, a whistleblower who brought into light the Vyapam scam in Madhya Pradesh, is set to join the Congress in Bhopal today. He had earlier joined the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) last year.
Anand Rai exposed the irregularities in the examination process of the Madhya Pradesh Professional Examination Board (MPPEB), also known as Vyapam, pertaining to the alleged manipulation of digital data and OMR answer sheets. Vyapam is responsible for holding several competitive examinations in the state.
The scam is about allegations against Vyapam officials who manipulated the digital data of OMR answer sheets (computer data) and subsequently blackened the corresponding answer circles in the OMR answer sheets to illegally pass candidates in Madhya Pradesh Pre Medical Test (MPPMT) in 2012.
While pursuing his medical education at Indore’s MGM College from 2003 to 2007, Anand Rai noticed several irregularities in the examination process. In 2005, while attending his MD exams, he observed that many top-qualified students were from the same hostel block, despite some not attending classes or exams.
Although he was initially hesitant to act due to his junior status, his observations laid the groundwork for his future actions.
The turning point came in 2008 when Anand Rai met his batchmate Jagdish Sagar, who was later identified as a key figure in the Vyapam scam. At a wedding, Anand Rai discovered a suitcase left by Jagdish Sagar containing Pre-Medical Test (PMT) admission forms and photographs, which solidified his suspicions of a large-scale scam.
After completing his post-graduation, Rai joined the college as a faculty member and decided to take action. In 2009, he filed a complaint with Vyapam, highlighting the irregularities in medical exams. The board’s investigation revealed 280 proxy candidates had impersonated actual candidates in the exams.
He filed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) in July 2013, requesting a thorough investigation into the scam. This led to the formation of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) and eventually the involvement of the CBI in 2015 following a Supreme Court order. The investigations resulted in the arrest of several high-profile politicians, including the state’s former education minister.
In 2015, Anand Rai had filed a complaint against senior BJP leader and former Union Minister Vikram Verma, alleging that he had used his influence to get his daughter transferred to a medical college in Bhopal. The complaint led to Anand Rai’s transfer from Indore to Dhar, which he challenged in court. The transfer order was eventually cancelled by the government.
In June last year, Anand Rai had joined the BRS in the presence of its chief and then Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao in Hyderabad.
Anand Rai was arrested in November 2022 in a case under the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act over an alleged defamatory Facebook post against the then Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister’s Deputy Secretary Laxman Singh Markam.
The Supreme Court granted him bail in January last year.