Former Madhya Pradesh ex-gov Ram Naresh Yadav in Vyapam scam dies

Bhopal: Former Madhya Pradesh governor Ram Naresh Yadav has been robbed of an opportunity to come clean on charges of his involvement in the infamous Vyapam scam, following his demise on Tuesday.

Veteran Congress leader and former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yadav passed away at SGPGI Lucknow after a prolonged illness.

“I will cover the issue of Vyapam scam in my next memoir,” Mr Yadav had indicated while releasing his first autobiography in Hindi, Meri Kahani (My Story), in February this year.

The memoir primarily dwelt on his days as chief minister of Uttar Pradesh. He demitted office of governor on September 7, 2016.

His half-a-decade stint as governor of MP, which started on August 26, 2011, had been marred by the Vyapam scam involving corruption in admissions in medical colleges in MP and recruitments in various state government jobs.

The period had also witnessed tragic death of his son Sailesh (52), also an accused in the Vyapam scam, in mysterious circumstances in his residence in Lucknow in 2015.

The former chief minister of Uttar Pradesh had been accused of using his influence to recruit some forest guards. The special task force (STF), appointed to probe the matter earlier, filed a FIR against him in this connection.

Yadav served as chief minister from 1977 to 1979 with the Janata Party. He later joined the Congress and served as governor from 2011.

“He was deprived of a chance to prove his innocence, before and after his death. As a governor, he could not put his side of his story on the issue and his death has denied him the opportunity to come clean by though his memoir,” Sachidananad Choubey, an academician, observed.