Garhwal Post Bureau
DEHRADUN, 14 Feb: The Uttarakhand Special Task Force (STF) has unearthed a high-tech cheating racket during the Central competitive examination conducted in the State FrIday. Two accused allegedly involved in facilitating unfair means in the examination have been arrested. IG STF Nilesh Bharne personally disclosed the details of the case to the media here on Saturday.
Bharne reminded that the Government of India had conducted the Multi Tasking (Non-Technical) Staff and Havaldar recruitment examination–2025 under the Staff Selection Commission (SSC) for the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) and the Central Bureau of Narcotics (CBN) across various examination centres in different states, including Uttarakhand. It was during this examination that the use of modern technology to facilitate cheating had come to light.
The Uttarakhand STF team apprehended two accused who were allegedly operating a sophisticated racket to manipulate the examination process. The accused had reportedly lured candidates with promises of ensuring their success in the examination and were demanding Rs 10 lakhs from each aspirant. After seizing the necessary electronic equipment, the team sealed the examination centre. The STF further revealed that a high-tech gang was operating with the intention of deceiving candidates by misleading them and offering false assurances of guaranteed success in exchange for substantial sums of money.
In view of apprehensions regarding the possible involvement of anti-social elements attempting to exploit candidates by offering to secure their success in the SSC Multi Tasking Recruitment Examination–2025, both the Police and the Uttarakhand STF had already been placed on alert. The examination was being conducted simultaneously across India, including multiple centres in Uttarakhand.
IG STF Nilesh Bharne shared that inputs had been received by the STF units of both Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand indicating that certain persons had formed a gang with the intent to defraud candidates by promising to help them pass the examination in return for hefty payments. Acting on this intelligence, the STF teams of UP as well as Uttarakhand conducted a joint operation and raided the examination centre at Mahadev Digital Zone, MKP Inter College, Dehradun.
During the raid, STF officials discovered a concealed underground chamber measuring approximately 24×24 inches in a corner of the UPS room located adjacent to the examination laboratory. Inside the chamber, two laptops and a router were found in an active automatic state and were being operated remotely. Investigations revealed that the laptops were being used to assist in solving the examination question papers through remote access.
The STF team utilised technical and forensic equipment to secure and seal the systems. Two accused, identified as Nitish Kumar, a resident of Nangloi, Delhi and Bhaskar Naithani, a resident of Dehradun, were arrested for their alleged involvement in the illegal activities.
IG STF Nilesh Bharne informed that the accused demanded Rs 10 lakhs from candidates to ensure their success. Thereafter, advanced technological methods were employed to remotely access the computers and solve the question papers. A police team has been constituted to identify and apprehend other co-accused involved in the racket. Further investigation in the matter is underway.
