LUCKNOW: The UP Special Task Force arrested four more persons, including a school manager, in connection with the question paper leak of the Review Officer (RO) and Assistant Review Officer (ARO) (Preliminary) Examination, 2023. The examination was conducted by the UP Public Service Commission (UPPSC) on February 11 of this year, according to senior STF officials.
Earlier on April 3, the mastermind of the question paper leak, Rajiv Nayan Mishra, who was also behind the UP Police constable recruitment exam paper leak held on February 17 and 18, was arrested by the UP STF from Gautambuddh Nagar. Later, the STF arrested a Lucknow-based commerce coaching operator Amit Singh in connection with the case.
A senior STF official confirmed that the arrested accused were identified as Sharad Singh Patel, a resident of Mirzapur who currently resides in a flat in Vrindavan Colony, Lucknow, Abhishek Shukla from Raja Bazar, Chowk in Lucknow, and two residents of Prayagraj, Kamlesh Kumar Pal and Arpit Vineet Yashwant.
The officer said in a press note that a question paper of RO/ARO examination and over ₹two lakh were recovered from the accused when they were arrested near Kalindi Park of Vrindavan colony under PGI police station limits, the officer said in a press note.
He said that Sharad Singh Patel’s name had surfaced following the arrest of the commerce coaching operator Amit Singh, who, during interrogation revealed that he had sold the question papers of the RO/ARO exam to Sharad Singh Patel for ₹25 lakh, after obtaining them from the mastermind Ram Nayan Mishra. He said Sharad Singh informed some RO/ARO aspirants about the availability of the question paper near Phoenix Palassio Mall, under Sushant Golf City police station, only a few hours before the exam. Later, he even dropped the aspirants off at their respective examination centres.
{{/usCountry}}He said that Sharad Singh Patel’s name had surfaced following the arrest of the commerce coaching operator Amit Singh, who, during interrogation revealed that he had sold the question papers of the RO/ARO exam to Sharad Singh Patel for ₹25 lakh, after obtaining them from the mastermind Ram Nayan Mishra. He said Sharad Singh informed some RO/ARO aspirants about the availability of the question paper near Phoenix Palassio Mall, under Sushant Golf City police station, only a few hours before the exam. Later, he even dropped the aspirants off at their respective examination centres.
{{/usCountry}}He further said that Sharad Singh Patel was also arrested by the STF in 2022 in connection with the question paper leak case of the Village Development Officer exam in 2019. On March 15, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath ordered the cancellation of the Review Officer (RO)/Assistant Review Officer (ARO) (Preliminary) Examination, 2023, and mandated its re-conduction within the next 6 months.