Bhubaneswar: The Crime Branch of Odisha Police on Tuesday arrested former State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) Director Manoj Padhi after 4 hours of marathon grilling in connection with alleged irregularities in the preparation of school textbooks that triggered a major controversy in the state.
The 57-year-old OAS officer was earlier placed under suspension by Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi.
This comes a day after the Crime Branch began its probe into the irregularities in preparation, approval and publication of school textbooks for classes I to VIII in the state. The agency has registered a case under Sections 316(5), 201, 3(5), and 61(2) of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) on the basis of a complaint filed by SCERT director Madhusmita Sahu on Monday. A special investigation team has been formed under the direct supervision of the Crime Branch SP, with DSP Narendra Kumar Behera appointed as the investigating officer.
While the errors were initially viewed as extreme negligence, the probe also explored the possibility of intentional conspiracy.
According to the agency, investigation revealed that Padhi, while functioning as the then Director, TE & SCERT was entrusted with the overall supervision, coordination, monitoring and approval of the textbook development process under NEP-2020. They have found prima facie evidence indicating criminal negligence and dereliction of duty on the part of the former SCERT Director.
“He dishonestly failed to discharge the official duties entrusted to him and knowingly approved and forwarded print-ready manuscripts for publication without ensuring verification of their factual, scientific, geographical, translation and pictorial contents amounting to criminal negligence. Such acts and omissions resulted in publication and distribution of erroneous textbooks, causing wrongful loss to the State Exchequer to the tune of approximately Rs 175 crore and corresponding injury to public interest,” it noted.
Notably, the Chief Minister had publicly suggested a larger conspiracy behind the unusually high number of printing errors in school textbooks to discredit the state government and the public education system.
More than 1,600 errors were detected in the textbooks, ranging from factual inaccuracies and broken mathematical formulas to grammatical and historical blunders. Reports indicated that warnings about errors were allegedly ignored at multiple levels, even in subsequent “rectified” printings.
Legal experts noted that the the case has been registered under relevant sections of BNS, including Section 316(5), which pertains to criminal breach of trust by a public servant and carries a maximum prison term of ten years. This empowers authorities to arrest the accused based on interrogation findings.
The state government has already taken administrative action, suspending Padhi along with three assistant directors and initiating disciplinary proceedings against others involved in the publishing process on the basis of the findings of the three-member committee headed by development commissioner D K Singh.
Meanwhile, the Crime Branch is examining every stage of the textbook preparation process — from content development, selection, and approval to printing, publication, and distribution — to identify lapses and fix accountability. This includes scrutiny of editorial boards, desktop publishing agencies, and printing presses, where officials are analysing records, seizing documents, and recording statements from involved parties.
