SIT flags irregularities in APPSC Group-I exam

The special investigation team (SIT) of the Andhra Pradesh police, which probed the lapses in the conduct of Group-I job recruitment examination during the previous YSR Congress Party government, has flagged several irregularities in the valuation process, officials familiar with the matter said on Thursday

The special investigation team (SIT) of the Andhra Pradesh police, which probed the lapses in the conduct of Group-I job recruitment examination during the previous YSR Congress Party government, has flagged several irregularities in the valuation process, officials familiar with the matter said on Thursday.

The SIT, constituted by the state government under the auspices of Crime Investigation Department chief Ravi Shankar Ayyanar on February 14, following a direction from the state high court, submitted its report to the court on August 10.

The report, which comes amid concerns over the recent paper leak allegations and student protests, has exposed serious irregularities in the evaluation of Group-I examinations conducted by the Andhra Pradesh Public Service Commission’s (APPSC) in December 2020.

According to the SIT report, which HT has seen, the examination process was repeatedly compromised across its three stages of evaluation, with answer scripts moved out of secure government custody, qualified evaluators sidelined, unauthorised personnel brought in and widespread alterations detected through forensic examination.

The Group-I examination (mains) was held from December 14 to 20, 2020, with 114,473 aspirants competing for 169 posts, including deputy collectors and revenue divisional officers. The APPSC initially used digital valuation and declared the results on April 1, 2021, shortlisting 326 candidates.

“The valuation process was later changed after the digital evaluation was challenged, leading to two rounds of manual valuation,” the SIT said.

The SIT said the evaluation process was repeatedly compromised across its three stages of evaluation – first digital evaluation in 2021 by TrueGrader EduServices and manual evaluation in Haailand resort from Dec 2021 to February 2022 and fresh Manual Evaluation in Vijayawada in 2022.

The controversy led to multiple petitions filed by the aspirants before the high court in 2022. On March 13, 2024, the high court held that the second and third valuations were illegal and irregular and ordered the conduct of a fresh Group-I (mains) examination.

In the latest findings, the SIT examined 736 candidate dossiers at seven Central Forensic Science Laboratories (CFSLs) and recorded statements from 173 witnesses, providing forensic and testimonial evidence of the irregularities.

The SIT found that the original Group-I (mains) answer scripts were shifted from the APPSC strong room to Haailand Resort at Mangalagiri in Guntur district and were kept there for 84 days, from December 5, 2021 to February 26, 2022. “There is no documented justification or APPSC chairman’s approval for the move,” the SIT said.

The SIT investigation also disclosed that as many as 452 university subject experts engaged by the APPSC were not used. Instead, 66 data-entry operators, including electricians, security guards, clerks, private teachers and housewives, were deployed for evaluation of answer sheets.

“They were instructed not to open the answer scripts but to transfer earlier marks onto OMR valuation slips. The operators also signed as Examiner-1, Examiner-2, Scrutiniser and Camp Officer. This is nothing but forgery and impersonation,” the SIT said.

The SIT found that earlier, too, the digital evaluation contract was awarded without any competitive tenders to TrueGrader EduServices, whose managing director was recorded as a college friend and associate of then APPSC secretary PSR Anjaneyulu.

The investigation also found that the mandatory independent second and third evaluations were not actually carried out, with second-evaluation marks allegedly generated by adding or subtracting one or two marks from the first evaluation.

The forensic evaluation of answer sheets also revealed that out of 736 answer sheets, 718 showed alterations or overwriting. The examination also found 159 signature mismatches and 153 chief examiner alterations, the SIT said.

“In one case, the central forensic science laboratory (CFSL) analysis found two fundamentally different handwritings in a candidate’s answer scripts, pointing to suspected third-party writing. In another, a candidate’s Economics marks were reduced from 103 to 69, even though a second evaluation had awarded 115 marks,” the SIT said.

After the Haailand exercise was set aside, APPSC conducted another manual evaluation in Vijayawada in 2022. The SIT found further security and procedural lapses, including the printing of 48,442 duplicate OMR sheets carrying original barcode numbers without high court approval.

“A confidential list of 57 examiners was also leaked before evaluation; yet 47 of them were subsequently allowed to evaluate scripts. The APPSC strong room remained without CCTV coverage for the first 17 days,” the SIT report said.

The SIT has also specifically examined the role of the then APPSC Secretary P S R Anjaneyulu, who served from October 2019 to March 2022 and approved the private contracts and shifting of scripts to Haailand.

The SIT report notes that Anjaneyulu was named as ‘Accused No 1’ (A-1) in the case and was booked under Sections 409, 477-A, 420 and 120-B read with Section 34 of the IPC.