Cuttack: The Orissa High Court on Tuesday granted interim protection from arrest to three suspended Assistant Directors of the State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) in connection with the alleged irregularities in the preparation and publication of school textbooks that triggered a major controversy in Odisha.
The interim relief was granted to Dilip Kumar Sahu, Pralipta Mishra and Bharati Tudu, who had approached the High Court seeking anticipatory bail, apprehending arrest by the Crime Branch during the ongoing investigation.
Sources said the Crime Branch is expected to issue notices to the three officials shortly, summoning them for questioning as part of the probe. The officials moved the High Court after the arrest of former SCERT Director Manoj Kumar Padhy, who was taken into custody following prolonged interrogation by the Crime Branch over the alleged lapses in the publication of textbooks for Classes I to VIII.
Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi had earlier suspended Padhy along with the 3 Assistant Directors after the textbook controversy came to light. The four were suspended based on the findings of a high-level inquiry committee headed by Development Commissioner DK Singh.
The State government has also initiated disciplinary proceedings against six other Assistant Directors—Bandita Pattnaik, Manas Ranjan Rout, Manoranjan Mahapatra, Prashant Kumar Sahu, Manas Kumar Nayak and Dr. Sudarshan Santara. The Crime Branch launched its investigation on the directions of the Chief Minister after receiving a written complaint from SCERT Director Madhusmita Sahu.