MP CM Chouhan breaks his silence on Vyapam scam, says he is proud of the fair probe, rules out his resignation

New Delhi: Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has finally broken his silence on Vyapam scam and claimed it was he who initiated a probe into the case.

"When we probed the matter we found the scam is deeper than first thought. When I found about the scam I handed the matter to the Special Task Force(STF)," Chouhan said.

Speaking about his change in position on a CBI probe into the scam, Chouhan said, "I asked for a CBI probe because a vicious atmosphere was being created. I wanted to put all doubts and fears to rest," he added.

In an exclusive interview to CNN-IBN, Chouhan also rubbished Congress's claims and said there is no question of his resignation. "I am proud of the fair probe and there is no question of my resigning."

Pointing out that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had full faith in him and his government, he said, "Party has given me full support. Modi fully trusts me. I am proud of Modi and Amit Shah and my leadership."

Earlier, the Madhya Pradesh government on Tuesday filed a plea in High Court for a CBI probe into Vyapam scam.

While politics over the alleged scam continues, people having links to Vyapam continue to die under mysterious circumstances. There have been at least four Vyapam-linked deaths in the last four days. While a journalist covering the scam died on Saturday, a medical college dean breathed his last on Sunday while a trainee sub-inspector recruited through Vyapam was found dead in a lake in Madhya Pradesh's Sagar district on Monday morning. A police constable, too, has been found dead in Tikamgarh on Tuesday.

The Vyapam scam has become a major political controversy with numerous witnesses and accused dying under mysterious circumstances. The Madhya Pradesh Professional Examination Board (MPPEB) scam relates to irregularities in admission in state-run medical colleges and recruitment in government jobs.

Alleged financial and administrative irregularities, including unauthorised disposal of application forms, worth crores of rupees by the MPPEB have been pointed out in an audit report.

The MPPEB conducts entrance and recruitment tests for admission in medical and engineering courses, and selection in certain government services, among others.

It has been alleged that corrupt officials at the board took money to compromise the examination and recruitment for several professional courses. These courses include pre-engineering, pre-medical, MCA, teaching among others.