A panchayat member of the BJP has been arrested for alleged cheating in an examination conducted for the recruitment of inspectors to the state food and supplies department on Sunday.
Uttam Mandal is a member of Aiho panchayat and a resident of the Boxinagar area under the jurisdiction of Habibpur police station.
Sources said Mandal was appearing for the exam at C.C. Girls’ High School in Habibpur on Sunday. The sources said invigilators found he was using chits to write the answers.
“He was caught red-handed. The teachers barred him from writing the exam further and handed him to police,” said a source.
The police questioned Mandal and registered his arrest on Monday night. He was booked for resorting to unfair means in the exam.
A court on Tuesday remanded Mandal in police custody for two days.
Trinamul Congress leader Ashish Kundu said the arrest proved that the BJP was prone to malpractices and corruption.
The BJP has distanced itself from the incident.
“We believe in honesty and transparency. There is no question of defending someone accused of cheating. The law will take its own course,” said Ajay Ganguly, a vice- president of the BJP in Malda district.
