The Bhavnagar police investigating the sale of textbooks (pasti scam) are probing the role of more schools in the scam. The ‘unaccountable’ state government is believed to have allowed people involved in the scam to sell the books to private shop-keepers and scrap dealers.

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The police have identified three more schools which were into this business.  A police source said that the clerk arrested in this connection, Jatin Vaghela, informed them that he was not accountable for the sale of these books.

Cops said, “These books were sold to some private shopkeepers at a subsidised rate and they were getting to the root of the matter.” Sources further said that cops have identified mismanagement in the education department where no accountability regarding distribution of free books in schools was held.

They have also exposed mismanagement in education department at the district level. “The District Education Officer (DEO) has indulged in mismanagement and has no account of the books supposed to be distributed free to the schools,” said police sources.

However, the books sold in the current case were sold off as per the instructions of Vaghela. Another accused who has been arrested in the case and the principal of the school, Mahipalsinh Gohil and his peon Vinod Bariya, sold the books at Rs25,000 to the scrap dealer.

The police also identified, during the course of investigation, three more schools which were involved in a similar scam. “We will arrest more people in this connection very soon,” said police sources.