Maharashtra TET Scam: Shiv Sena-UBT Hits Back At CM Fadnavis, Says Thackeray Exposed Fraud & Ordered Free Probe

Mumbai: The political slugfest over the Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) scam intensified on Friday after Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sushma Andhare strongly refuted Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis' allegation that the biggest TET scam in Maharashtra took place during Uddhav Thackeray's tenure. She asserted that it was the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government that uncovered the scam in 2021 and ensured an independent investigation without shielding anyone.

A day after Fadnavis claimed that the scam went beyond a paper leak and involved manipulation of results to make failed candidates pass, Andhare accused the BJP of attempting to rewrite the facts. She said the Thackeray government had given investigating agencies complete freedom to act, even after allegations surfaced that the daughter of then minister Abdul Sattar had benefited from malpractice. According to her, around 3,500 candidates who had allegedly secured jobs through fraudulent means were blacklisted, including Sattar's daughter.

Andhare further alleged that the roots of the scam lay in decisions taken during the first Fadnavis government between 2014 and 2019, when Vinod Tawde was the Education Minister. She claimed that the contract for educational and university examination coordination had been awarded to G.A. Software Technology Pvt. Ltd., whose director Pritish Deshmukh was later arrested in connection with the paper leak investigations.

Referring to the MHADA recruitment examination scheduled for December 12, 2021, she said police received intelligence about a question paper leak a day before the exam and raided multiple locations, leading to the arrest of Pritish Deshmukh. 

According to Andhare, Deshmukh's interrogation led investigators to Abhishek Savrikar, then Technical Adviser in the Education Department, who was arrested and charge-sheeted in the TET scam. She alleged that after securing bail, Savrikar was inducted into the BJP by senior leader Ravindra Chavan. She further claimed that Savrikar's name has now resurfaced in the alleged Soil and Water Conservation Department recruitment irregularities, with an FIR registered against him in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar.

The Sena (UBT) spokesperson also targeted the present ruling alliance over subsequent developments in the case. She alleged that IAS officer Sushil Khodwekar, who had been arrested in the TET scam, was reinstated during the tenure of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. She also claimed that IPS officer Bhagyashri Navtake, who played a key role in exposing the scam, was transferred to a punishment posting after the BJP-Shiv Sena government assumed office.