5 arrested in connection with ITBP paper leak of January 2021

The examination was conducted on January 10, 2021 for 46,174 candidates across 81 centres in 13 Indian cities. However, the question paper was circulated via WhatsApp before the exam started, said officials.

Five employees — including three directors — of a Kolkata-based private company who was given a contract for conducting recruitment exams for the Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), have been arrested in connection with a paper leak case in January 2021, police said on Thursday.

The case was related to a written examination for the post of constables in the central armed forces.

The case was related to a written examination for the post of constables in the central armed forces.

According to police, Amitav Roy,61, Jaydeep Goswami,58, and Subhendu Kumar Paul,51 are directors of the firm Indian Institute of Psychometry (IIP). They were allegedly on the run since the cheating and criminal conspiracy case was registered at south Delhi’s Lodhi Colony police station on January 20, 2021.

While the three were arrested on September 19, the company’s consultant Rohit Raj,38, and printer Dharmender Lal, 38 were nabbed on Wednesday night.

Deputy commissioner of police (DCP) (crime) Vikram said the complaint was filed by ITBP commandant, who told police that IIP was outsourced for conducting the exams and as per the contract, the firm was fully responsible for setting and printing of question papers, conducting the examination, scanning, packaging, and maintaining confidentiality throughout the process.

“The examination was conducted on January 10, 2021 for 46,174 candidates across 81 centres in 13 Indian cities. However, the question paper was circulated via WhatsApp before the exam started and was also received by some senior officers of the ITBP. After the exam commenced, it was confirmed that the leaked paper was identical to the actual one,” Singh said.

Consequently, the case was registered, and investigation was later transferred to the crime branch. During the probe, replies were sought from the ITBP and the company IIP, relevant documents including contracts and MoUs were seized, the DCP said.

“During interrogation, an employee of the firm told police about Roy’s involvement in the leak. Roy and other two directors were not joining the investigation despite being issued notices. On September 19, our team located Roy, Goswami, and Paul in Kolkata, and interrogated them, which revealed the role of the consultant and the printer, who were subsequently arrested,” added DCP Singh.