Vyapam: Wistleblower Prashant Pandey's wife detained, MP cops seize Rs 9.5 lakh

INDORE: Crime branch of city police detained cyber forensic expert and Vyapam scam whistle blower Prashant Pandey's wife while she was working in her office near Nehru Stadium on Saturday evening.

Nearly a dozen cops including women constables barged into Meghna Pandey's office and asked all employees to switch-off their mobile phones. They then frisked Meghna desk and took her in a car. She worked as HR manager in Exide Batteries.

The incident happened when Prashant was in New Delhi for attending court related matter. Speaking to TOI over phone, he said, "My family is paying for speaking against the state government. Security guards were missing on Saturday. I could not talk to my wife after 4pm on Saturday. State government has started harassing me and my family members. Cops have also taken Rs 9.5 lakh from my wife's possession, which was meant for purchasing property."

However, it could not be ascertained for what reasons Meghna was detained. Additional SP (crime), Vinay Prakash Paul did not take up phone calls.

It is to be noted that Pandey had claimed to possess crucial documents related to state chief minister's role in Madhya Pradesh Professional Examination Board (MPPEB) scam.

Earlier, after arrest from a hotel on August 6 last year, Prashant was charged with sections violating IT Act and conduct of forgery. Police claimed he was arrested for selling call detail records (CDRs) of individuals for big money. Hard disk of a computer from Prashant's office at Indore and his laptop were seized and sent to Central Forensic Laboratory for data retrieval.