New Delhi: Jharkhand government employee Abhay Kumar Tiwari, the alleged mastermind behind the Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) exam paper leak, paid for the five-star hotel stay of directors of the company that conducted the test using his own UPI account, the state CID has found.
The payments—for a stay at Ranchi’s Radisson Blu—highlight the close personal association between Tiwari and the directors of TSR Data Processing Private Limited (TDPL), the firm entrusted with conducting the 14th edition of the JPSC exam.
The CID made these submissions before a special CID court Wednesday while it was hearing Tiwari’s bail application, which it rejected.
TDPL had earlier been blacklisted in 2024 for three years but was awarded the exam contract without participating in a tendering process. The CID has accused TDPL directors Samarpal Singh and Ranbir Singh of being “active participants” in the conspiracy and said they ran a “secret cell” to facilitate the large-scale fraud.
Tiwari was serving as a Block Supply Officer (BSO) in Godda district when he was arrested in July, while also working as TDPL’s marketing manager and authorised representative. The CID submitted in court that the rent agreement for TDPL’s office was executed in Tiwari’s name.
Holding a key position in TDPL, Tiwari himself appeared in nearly a dozen examinations conducted by the firm and used his own “fraudulent selection” to demonstrate his ability to manipulate the examination system and lure aspirants into paying Rs 5 lakh to Rs 25 lakh for various stages of qualification, the state CID said.
The agency has so far arrested 20 people, including former JPSC chairman Lalbiaktluanga Khiangte and deputy controller of examination Shweta Kumari Gupta, over widespread irregularities in the conduct of the 14th JPSC exam this year. The probe began after massive student protests in Ranchi.
The CID’s investigating officer told the court that Budhshwar Bhagat, who collected cash from candidates, had confessed to arranging and handing over details of 24 candidates for this year’s JPSC examination, 11 of whom qualified the preliminary examination. All 11 had paid Rs 10 lakh each, the CID said.
The CID said the Tiwari-run syndicate’s role extended beyond leaking question papers and arranging impersonators to physically tampering with OMR answer sheets and digitally manipulating the evaluation system and servers. It alleged that more than 350 OMR sheets in the Forest Range Officer (FRO) examination and more than 150 in the Assistant Conservator of Forest (ACF) examination, both conducted by the JPSC, were manipulated.
Judge Yogesh Kumar observed in the order rejecting Tiwari’s bail plea that the case diary contained specific material attributing to him the role of facilitator between TDPL, people connected with the JPSC exam process, and candidates. “His identity as Marketing Manager of TDPL, the financial transactions reflected in his bank account with persons connected with the alleged network, the payment of expenses of TDPL’s directors, the material concerning his direct contact with candidates and the statements recorded during investigation, when considered cumulatively, disclose substantial prima facie material regarding his involvement in the alleged examination manipulation.”
The court had also rejected former JPSC chairman Khiangte’s bail application last week after the agency submitted key findings from its probe. In its counter to Khiangte’s plea, the CID said Examination Controller Asim Kispotta had objected to TDPL, pointing out that it had been blacklisted by another state body, the Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission.
Instead of acting on the complaint, Khiangte took away all examination-related responsibilities from Kispotta and handed them to Gupta, who continued to handle examination work despite her transfer, the CID told the court.
The agency also accused Khiangte of attempting to destroy evidence, alleging that after resigning as JPSC chairman, he removed his office laptop and pen drive and deleted or scratched their storage, as confirmed by forensic examination.
(Edited by Chingkheinganbi Mayengbam)
Also read: JPSC ex-chairman is the latest. 4 IAS officers faced arrests in Jharkhand since 2022