Lucknow: A firm that was blacklisted by the Bihar School Examination Board (BSEB) in October last year over alleged lapses in the conduct of exams — and whose owner is out on bail in a 2017 paper leak case from Bihar — went on to conduct recruitment tests for the central and Uttar Pradesh governments that have also been marred by cheating allegations and technical glitches.
The Ahmedabad-based firm, Edutest Solutions Pvt Ltd, also submitted a bid to conduct a computer-based test for the central Staff Selection Commission on 15 December, 2023 but was rejected because it hadn’t submitted a non-blacklisting certificate, tender documents show.
Originally named Confisec Pvt Ltd, the family-run firm was founded in 1981-1982 by Sureshchandra Arya. He is now the president of the Sarvadeshik Arya Pratinidhi Sabha, which describes itself as “the apex body of [the] Arya Samaj worldwide”. The company is now run by Vineet Arya (owner), Jaya Arya, (director) and Saksham Arya (director). Vineet is the son of Sureshchandra Arya while Jaya is Vineet’s wife.
Confisec had been contracted to print the question papers for a Bihar SSC examination in 2017. This exam was cancelled over paper leak allegations, and Vineet Arya was one of those arrested. He later secured bail and the case is still ongoing. Confisec changed its name to Edutest Solutions shortly afterwards.
Edutest won contracts to conduct several examinations for the BSEB in 2022 and 2023. It was blacklisted over alleged irregularities in the conduct of these exams in October 2023.
But just a day before this blacklisting, it was awarded a contract to conduct examinations for the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), which comes under the Union Ministry of Science and Technology, for recruitment to the posts of section officer (SO) and assistant section officer (ASO).
Held in February this year, these exams saw allegations of cheating and several arrests, and a group of candidates has approached the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) seeking to have the results declared void.
In Uttar Pradesh, last year, the firm secured contracts to conduct at least two examinations that were also held this February: one to recruit nurses for the RML Institute of Medical Sciences (RMLIMS), Lucknow — which saw technical glitches that led to retests being ordered for candidates from several centres — and one to recruit police constables.
The constable recruitment exam — which saw as many as 48.17 lakh candidates vying for 60,244 posts — had to be cancelled after a multi-state gang allegedly leaked the question paper to thousands of candidates.
The UP Police Recruitment and Promotion Board (UPPRPB) has now blacklisted Edutest from getting future work for the state government and all payments to the firm have been withheld, UPPRPB chairman and Director General (Vigilance) Rajeev Krishna told ThePrint.
UP Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Deepak Kumar also confirmed this, adding that the board puts information about blacklisted companies on its website.
The UP Police Special Task Force (STF)’s Meerut unit is probing the case. Brijesh Singh, additional SP, STF, told ThePrint that owner Vineet Arya is yet to appear before it and record his statement despite having been issued at least four notices under section 160 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
Speaking to ThePrint on condition of anonymity, an Edutest Solutions official denied reports that its owner, Vineet Arya, had fled abroad and said he has been regularly visiting its office in Ahmedabad. The official further said that Arya regularly goes abroad for work.
Significantly, the official also claimed that the UPPRPB was aware of his arrest in 2017 and that a written declaration was shared with the agency before the contract was signed.
ThePrint has reached Edutest founder-president Sureshchandra Arya for comment via calls and messages. This report will be updated if and when a response is received.
‘UP Police informed about Edutest owner’s arrest’
Speaking to ThePrint, the Edutest official said, “Our owner has not gone out of India — something that can be verified from his passport. He visits the office on a regular basis and keeps shuttling between India and foreign countries for work. He has visited Germany for work this month and returned. When the incident happened, about 60 of our employees were called to the Lucknow office of the UP STF and were questioned by the agency. They were asked to give statements and were treated very well….We were in shock when our name started appearing in the media again as we thought that the case was over. It is not correct to say that we are not responding; we chose to share our side with you now as we are in a much better position now.”
Asked if the company had sublet the transportation of constable recruitment exam question papers to another agency, TCI Express — whose employees were arrested by the STF in connection with the paper leak in March — the official said it was not a subletting as such.
“We were expecting about 20 lakh exam papers but got about 50 lakh. Our partner (TCI Express) always transports question papers for us due to our relations with them and this is not the first time it was happening. It is not like subletting the contract,” the official said.
The official also told ThePrint that the contract for the constable recruitment exam was awarded in November 2023.
Bihar SSC case & name change
In 2017, Vineet Arya was one of those arrested after a Bihar SSC question paper for a recruitment exam for government clerks and assistants was leaked and had to be cancelled. He was arrested alongside the SSC’s then chairman Sudhir Kumar, secretary Parmeshwar Ram and relatives of Kumar.
Court documents pertaining to the case show that the investigation found links in several other states including West Bengal, Jharkhand, Delhi and Gujarat.
The documents further show that Arya was involved in the exam work as the director of Confisec Pvt Ltd — the company engaged by the Bihar SSC to print the question papers.
Patna High Court documents further show that Arya secured provisional bail in 2020 in connection with the case after submitting that he was affected by “major depressive disorder with psychosis, having suicidal ideation co-morbid obsessive compulsive disorder”. The case is yet to reach a conclusion.
Confisec changed its name soon after Arya’s arrest.
An August 2018 document of the Gujarat Authority for advance Ruling, GST, Ahmedabad shows that the name of Confisec Pvt Ltd had by then been changed to Edutest Solutions Pvt Ltd.
Also Read: In 1st case under new anti paper leak law, Maharashtra Police book 4 for malpractice related to NEET
What led to Bihar blacklisting
Documents in possession with ThePrint show that Edutest Solutions got contracts from the BSEB to conduct the Secondary Teacher Eligibility Test or STET (commerce) in 2022, STET 2023, the Diploma in Elementary Education (DElEd) entrance examination in 2023 and the Simultala Awasiya Vidyalaya Class 11 entrance examination in 2023.
Subsequently, through a letter dated 20 October, 2023, the BSEB notified Edutest Solutions that it was banned from conducting any exam for the board and blacklisted from all work pertaining to it for three years.
The letter, in possession with ThePrint, accuses the company of “extremely negligent behaviour” and “non-professional conduct.” It further mentions that 5,657 candidates who received marks lower than the cut-off for their category were nevertheless declared “qualified” in the STET 2023 exam conducted by the company.
It also talks about delays such as online application portals not going live on time, exams starting late, and results not being declared on schedule.
Speaking to ThePrint, Satyabir Bharti, the senior advocate who represented the Bihar SSC in the Patna High Court in connection with the 2017 paper leak case, told ThePrint that the board was dissatisfied with irregularities in several exams conducted by the company, which is why it blacklisted it from all work. However, the firm has challenged this before the high court.
‘Cheating’ in CSIR exam
One day before the company was blacklisted by the BSEB, it was awarded a contract to conduct the CSIR SO/ASO exams. Held in February 2024, these were marred by allegations of cheating and arrests in Dehradun and Rajasthan.
It was alleged that the “cheating mafia” helped candidates solve questions using surreptitiously connected leased lines — which enable private telecommunications networks — in two centres in Dehradun.
Two FIRs were lodged by Dehradun police and at least four alleged gang members were arrested, while two centre operators are still wanted in the cases. Similarly, alleged “solver gang” members were arrested in Rajasthan’s Behror for helping candidates cheat.
A group of the candidates subsequently moved the CAT to declare the exams void.
Documents of the CSIR tender show that a work order for end-to-end work for these exams to the tune of Rs 8 crore 4 thousand was awarded to Edutest Solutions on 19 October 2023.
Speaking to ThePrint, Dehradun SSP Ajay Singh said that since the government does not have an agency to conduct such mass-level exams, it hires private companies, which in turn sublet the contracts or hire other companies to conduct the exam due to a lack of employees.
Responding to ThePrint about how Edutest secured the contract despite being blacklisted, the CSIR said the company was awarded work based on the information provided by it on the last date of submission of tender documents.
“CSIR selected the agency and awarded the work to the agency after following the prescribed procedure and with the due approval of the competent authority, based on the information provided by the agency as on last date of submission of tender documents. However, there are adequate provisions in the agreement to take action in case of violation of terms of the agreement at any point of time after award of the work.”
“CSIR declared the results of the 1st stage of the recruitment process after due scrutiny and based on the report of the third-party audit of the allegations received through various sources such as police reports, mails, etc,” it said in an email reply to queries from ThePrint.
In reference to the FIR and court cases, it said the CSIR is aware of these, and all the relevant information has been supplied to the authorities.
Also Read: Jumbled questions to 2 rounds of ID checks, UP govt issues exam guidelines amid paper leak backlash
Nursing exam compromised
A recruitment exam for nurses conducted by Edutest for the RML Institute of Medical Sciences (RMLIMS), Lucknow on 9 February is yet another that was compromised.
In a notice issued by the institute on the same day, in possession with ThePrint, institute director Soniya Nityanand said Edutest Solutions was selected through an open Government e Marketplace (GeM) tender and had the responsibility of conducting a technically sound and smooth examination at 92 centres all over the country, of which 58 were in UP.
The notice says that the institute’s independent observers had noticed technical glitches at seven centres — the server being down, systems not working, power failures etc. — due to which retests would be conducted for the candidates registered in the morning shift at these centres. With Edutest Solutions expressing its inability to rectify these glitches, the notice also said the exam would be cancelled for the candidates in the afternoon shift at these centres.
Later, a committee formed to evaluate the examination process recommended a retest in 18 centres, with Edutest compensating the candidates for their travel expenses, the Hindustan Times reported.
ThePrint contacted RMLIMS spokesperson Dr A.K. Jain for a comment on the retest and whether Edutest was asked to reimburse the travel expenses of the candidates, but he directed this correspondent to Professor Meena Jauhari, who said she would be able to speak Monday after getting details.
Big clients, contracts, Arya Samaj links
The company’s founder, Sureshchandra Arya, is now focused on philanthropy and social service according to a profile in Gujarat-The Inspiring Edge (a coffee table book showcasing the journeys of various entrepreneurs and industry experts from across the state, unveiled by The Times Group). It also calls him the “international president of Arya Samaj”.
The website of the Sarvadeshik Arya Pratinidhi Sabha shows that Sureshchandra Arya is its president. This body was also one of the organisers of the International Arya Maha Sammelan 2018 held in New Delhi — an event attended by then President Ram Nath Kovind, then minister of science and technology Harsh Vardhan and then minister of state for human resource development Satya Pal Singh, along with representatives of 28 countries.
On its website, Edutest Solutions claims it has served “1,590 consumers” so far and conducted “1,130 million exams”, and mentions test authoring and banking, test administration, registration and application process, result processing, merit list generation and exam and question paper analysis as the “solutions” it provides.
It mentions that it is currently working with more than 100 premier clients in India and overseas, and that it’s trusted for its registration and application services.
This report has been updated to include a response from the CSIR.