According to a report published in Prabhat Khabar on Tuesday, former principal secretary of SC/ST welfare department, Bihar government, S M Raju, received the Bharat Gaurav Award, purportedly given by a private organisation, at a function held at Taj Palace Hotel. The official shared the photograph on his Facebook page on August 31. Raju is currently under suspension. He is an IAS officer of the 1991 batch.

The scam in SC/ST scholarship scheme had hit the headlines in 2016, after which the state government instituted a vigilance inquiry. An FIR was registered against 15 persons, including Raju who was secretary of the SC/ST Welfare department during 2013-14. The IAS officer went underground and has been traceless since then.