LUCKNOW: The fate of over 4.5 lakh aspirants was in a limbo as the general awareness paper of provincial civil services (PCS) examination was allegedly ‘leaked’ through WhatsApp on Sunday. While the UP Public Service Commission (UPPSC), which conducted the examination, denied that there was any leak, the director general of police, quoting the probe by the special task force, said that the paper was ‘leaked’ through WhatsApp before 9.30 am. A final decision on the cancellation of the paper was yet to be taken.
Right after the news about leak went viral, UP police roped in the STF to probe the matter. The brief before the STF was to find out whether the question had been circulated before or after the examination started? The subject paper in the second half was held as per schedule.
12-hour long probes in the case indicate key members of the gang have made internet calls through popular applications such as Skype and Viber.
DGP A K Jain said in the evening that as per the teams working on the case the paper got leaked before 9.30am, when the examination was supposed to start. “It went viral after that and may have been misused. STF was put on the job immediately and in his report has confirmed this,” said Jain. Chief secretary Alok Ranjan said that matter was being examined and action would be taken after the probe concludes.
Late in the evening a government official told reporters: “Any decision to cancel the paper will be taken only by the UP Public Service Commission (UPPSC). The government is awaiting report on the entire matter.” UP Public Service Commission however, was yet accept that there was a leak. UPPSC secretary Rizwan-ur-Rehman maintained, “Despite rumours, we have not received any reports on question paper leak.”
State police agencies detained two persons from Luckonw and Sitapur who were linked to the alleged leak and were probing the matter. IG STF Sujeet Pandey said that 10 teams have been put on the job. “The person who initiated the electronic transfer on mobile application was being traced. Suspects were being hunted in various parts of the state,” said Pandey. SP STF Amit Pathak was coordinating with the teams.
Apart from Lucknow, Allahabad, Sitapur, Varanasi and Kanpur a team had been sent to Gurgaon as well. Over 1 lakh mobile phone calls were examined on Sunday to join the dots.
Meanwhile, over 4.5 lakh candidates who took the examination at over 900 centres in the state, wait anxiously for the a final word. As the news of paper ‘leak’ spead, aspirants took to streets and protested against UP Public Service Commission in various districts. While protesters in Lucknow, led by BJP leaders, burnt effigy of commission’s chairman Anil Yadav, an angry group blocked Lucknow – Allahabad national highway in Rae Bareli district.
Anticipating likely attempts of leak, the Special Task Force had kept the education mafia on its radar for weeks before the exam. It had gathered specific inputs that paper could be traded for Rs 5 lakh. “We believe that having clicked photographs of the set of questions at one of the exam centres in the neighbouring disctric of Lucknow the person forwarded it to the mastermind. We have detained some persons for further questioning,” said a senior STF officer and added, “We would try to get to the bottom of the matter to establish what we have claimed.”
In Lucknow, the examination was held in 148 centres and over 70,000 candidates appeared in it. The PCS preliminary examination was being held across the state. The first shift was from 9.30 am to 11.30 am and second shift from 2.30 pm to 4.30 pm. Opposition parties demanded matter be probed by CBI probe and UP Public Service Commission (UPPSC) chairman taken to task.
Homework begins for STF
Two teams comprising five persons are scanning internet logs of suspected mobile numbers and internet users
Three teams comprising 14 persons were scanning phone call records
Remaining teams have been put for physical exercise to carry out raids, to question suspects and gather intelligence particularly in Lucknow and Allahabad
Modus operandi
Usually the masterminds rope in expert solvers to prepare the answer key just when the exam paper is about to begin. Dummy candidates sneak into pre-selected centres with mobile phones despite restrictions. Answers are passed onto dummy candidates then over the phone or some other electronic device. The answer key is then shared with some aspirants – who have paid up — sitting at a close distance from dummy candidates. Money is taken in advance and at times the syndicate working in this field returns the money or ask the aspirant to wait for the next one.
