₹4 lakh for govt job: Exam fraud racket busted in Uttar Pradesh

Kanpur: A major examination fraud racket that allegedly promised success in Staff Selection Commission (SSC) recruitment tests in exchange for ₹4 lakh per candidate has been busted by the Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF), exposing what investigators describe as a sophisticated operation that manipulated online examinations through advanced technological means.

The crackdown followed intelligence inputs indicating organised malpractice in SSC recruitment examinations, including those conducted for the Central Armed Police Forces, Secretariat Security Force constable posts and Assam Rifles Rifleman recruitment for 2026. Acting on the information, STF officials carried out a raid at the Balaji Digital Zone examination centre in the Knowledge Park area of Greater Noida on May 22.

Seven accused, including the alleged mastermind of the operation, were arrested during the raid. Those taken into custody were identified as Pradeep Chauhan, Arun Kumar, Sandeep Bhati, Nishant Raghav, Amit Rana, Shakir Malik and Vivek Kumar. Authorities also recovered around ₹50 lakh in cash, along with laptops, mobile phones and a large number of documents linked to the examination process.

Investigators said the group did not directly hack the SSC examination system. Instead, it allegedly bypassed the examination centre’s server infrastructure by installing a proxy server that enabled unauthorised access to question papers during the test. Through screen-sharing applications, examination questions were reportedly transmitted in real time to associates stationed outside the centre, who then solved the papers and relayed the correct answers back to candidates.

According to the STF, the accused had been operating the racket for an extended period and had turned recruitment examinations into a lucrative business by exploiting technology and charging aspirants hefty sums for guaranteed success. The investigation is continuing to determine the full extent of the network and identify additional beneficiaries and accomplices linked to the fraud.