Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF) arrested six individuals in connection with the paper leak of the Review Officer/Assistant Review Officer (Preliminary) Examination-2024. These arrests, made in Prayagraj, follow the discovery that the exam papers were leaked from a printing press in Bhopal. The examination, conducted by the Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission (UPPSC) on February 11, was subsequently canceled on March 2 after reports of the leak surfaced.
Prior to this, ten individuals had already been arrested in connection with the case. The accused face charges under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, including cheating, forgery, and criminal conspiracy, as well as the Uttar Pradesh Public Examination Act, 1998, and the Information Technology Act. During interrogation, it was revealed that the question paper was leaked in two ways.
The arrested individuals include Sunil Raghuvanshi, a mechanical engineer at the printing press, and others identified as Subhash Prakash, Vishal Dubey, Sandeep Pandey, Amarjeet Sharma, and Vivek Upadhyay, all his former classmates. Initial intelligence had suggested that the leak originated from a school in Prayagraj, where Arpit Vineet Yashwant, responsible for the exam at the center, was previously arrested along with four gang members in April. Investigations are also looking into the involvement of the school's management and principal.
The mastermind behind the leak, Rajeev Nayan Mishra, who has a history of involvement in similar crimes including the UP