KAPURTHALA: In line with the zero-tolerance policy against corruption adopted by the Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann-led Punjab government, the state Vigilance Bureau (VB) has apprehended a government schoolteacher for demanding a bribe.
The accused, Paramjit Singh, serving as a Science Master cum Legal Advisor at the Government Senior Secondary School, Kapurthala, and posted at the District Education Officer (Secondary) office, was arrested for seeking a bribe to clear a psychometric testing contract.
Complaint via Anti-Corruption Action Line
According to an official spokesperson of the state VB, the arrest followed a complaint lodged on the Chief Minister’s Anti-Corruption Action Line by Satinder Bir Singh, a retired District Education Officer.
During the verification of the complaint, it was found that following his retirement, the complainant started an Amritsar-based company named Edurise Enterprise, which conducts psychometric tests for school students. The complainant had submitted his company’s file to the Kapurthala DEO (Secondary) seeking approval to conduct these tests for 187 girl students across 14 government schools in the Bholath block for the academic session 2025-26.
Bargaining Over Student Assessments
Following the submission of the file, Paramjit Singh allegedly demanded a bribe of ₹200 per girl student, doing so in the name of the District Education Officer. After negotiations, the bribe amount was reduced to ₹150 per student. It is pertinent to note that the government pays the company ₹700 per student for conducting these critical assessments.
The VB spokesperson confirmed that the allegations against the accused were found to be true based on audio recordings submitted by the complainant.
Consequently, a case under the Prevention of Corruption Act has been registered against the accused at the VB Police Station in Jalandhar. Authorities have confirmed that further investigation into the case is actively underway, and the role of other suspected officers or employees within the department will also be thoroughly examined.
