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HPSSC paper leak: FIR against four for tampering with OMR sheet
The SIT of the Himachal Pradesh state vigilance and anti-corruption bureau registered an FIR against four persons, including two employees of the Himachal Pradesh Staff Selection Commission (HPSSC), Hamirpur, which now stands disbanded, and two candidates late on Saturday
The special investigation team (SIT) of the Himachal Pradesh state vigilance and anti-corruption bureau (SV&ACB) probing the junior office assistant (information technology) (JOA-IT) paper leak case has detected irregularities in another exam held last year in April for the same post.
The SIT registered an FIR against four persons, including two employees of the Himachal Pradesh Staff Selection Commission (HPSSC), Hamirpur, which now stands disbanded, and two candidates late on Saturday. The exam was held on April 24, 2022.
Those booked are Madan Lal and Kishori Lal, who worked as peons in HPSSC, and two candidates Vishal Chaudhary and Dinesh Kumar. They have been booked under sections 420 (cheating) and 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code and provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
Ongoing probe into the JOA (IT) paper leak revealed that two employees of erstwhile HPSSC -- Kishori Lal and Madan Lal -- tampered with the OMR sheets of two candidates and helped in getting selected, said additional director general of police (ADGP) Satwant Satwant Atwal Trivedi. All the four accused hail from Kangra district.
One of the candidates, Vishal Chaudhary, is son of Madan Lal and one is their neighbour, said the ADGP.
Atwal said that a niece of Uma Azad, the kingpin of the paper leak scam, and two other candidates scored exceptionally high marks in the exam. Further investigations into the case are on, she added.
Meanwhile, sources said that an FIR has also been registered against the former secretary of HPSSC, Jitender Kanwar. However, same could not be verified independently.
The vigilance bureau had busted a paper leak racket in the HPSSC on December 23 when a candidate had filed a complaint that some people were offering him question paper of JOA (IT) recruitment exam if he paid them money. The exam was scheduled for December 25.
The vigilance had arrested six people in the case, including Uma Azad, who was posted as the senior superintendent in the secrecy branch of the HPSSC. Question papers of two other exams were also recovered from her house.
The vigilance bureau then constituted an SIT to probe allegations of irregularity in other recruitment exams while the government suspended the functioning of the HPSSC. Later, two more people were arrested in the case.
The vigilance SIT has been probing recruitment exams conducted by the HPSSC in last three years — since Uma Azad was posted in the secrecy branch, the wing which was responsible to keep the question papers locked in a vault until a particular exam is conducted.
So far, total four FIRs have been registered in the paper leak case of screening exam for the post of JOA (IT), junior auditor and computer operator and arts teacher. The HPSSC was dissolved in February and all pending recruitments were shifted to the Himachal Pradesh Public Service Commission (HPPSC).
Meanwhile, vigilance sources said that SIT may soon summon the former secretary of HPSSC, Jitender Kanwar, for questioning in the paper leak case. On March 1, the government had given its nod to prosecute Kanwar in the case.
