Tamil Nadu: 99 scam TNPSC job exam with vanishing ink, banned for life
TNN | Jan 25, 2020, 06.08 AM IST
TNN | Jan 25, 2020, 06.08 AM IST
CHENNAI: Agents in collusion with government officials tried to outsmart a recruitment exam system by using a special ink that would disappear after a few hours and help them shade the correct answers on OMR answer sheets later. But, they manipulated answer scripts of 52 candidates with such perfection that 39 of 52 candidates ranked in the top 100 from Rameswaram and Keelakarai centres in Ramanathapuram, raising suspicion that led to busting of the scam.
The Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission (TNPSC) banned 99 candidates for life for resorting to malpractices in a Group IV exam held on September 1, 2019. On Friday, the state CBCID arrested a school education department staff member, an agent and an employee in the energy department, and detained at least 15 others including the tahsildars from Keezhakkarai and Rameswaram. The agents supplied the candidates pens filled with special ink and after changing the responses, the agents with the help of officials replaced the OMR sheets, a TNPSC release said.
‘Answer sheets of 52 candidates manipulated’
The arrested have been identified as E Ramesh, 39, of Triplicane, an office assistant in the directorate of public instruction (DPI), Mamallapuram resident M Thirukumaran, 35, an office assistant in the energy department who cleared the exam in 2017, and R Nithish Kumar of Triplicane, who cleared the Group-IV exam in 2019 and is now an agent.
The 99 candidates, now banned, appeared for the exam at Rameswaram and Keelakarai centres in Ramanathapuram district as instructed by the agents, the TNPSC said in a release, adding that detailed inquiries with the staff involved in exam work had confirmed that manipulations happened in these two centres.
Shocked to find more than 35 candidates from just two centres among top 100 rank holders, other candidates raised suspicion and the TNPSC conducted an inquiry with more than 50 toppers who wrote the exam at the two centres. It also called candidates who did not qualify in the exam to know what happened. “It was found that answer sheets of 52 candidates, of 99, were manipulated by scamsters who shaded correct responses after the exam and 39 ranked within the top 100,” the release said.
The TNPSC said it had replaced the 39 candidates on the merit list with new candidates and that an FIR had been registered against 99 candidates and brokers. “It has been confirmed that manipulations did not take place in any other centre in the state. So, TNPSC will conduct counselling after the certificate verification. The commission will undertake reforms to prevent such incidents in future.”
More than 13 lakh candidates appeared for the Group IV exam on September 1, 2019 to fill 9,398 vacancies for posts of junior assistant and typist among others. The results were out on November 12, the shortest time taken for announcing the results.
‘Answer sheets of 52 candidates manipulated’
The arrested have been identified as E Ramesh, 39, of Triplicane, an office assistant in the directorate of public instruction (DPI), Mamallapuram resident M Thirukumaran, 35, an office assistant in the energy department who cleared the exam in 2017, and R Nithish Kumar of Triplicane, who cleared the Group-IV exam in 2019 and is now an agent.
The 99 candidates, now banned, appeared for the exam at Rameswaram and Keelakarai centres in Ramanathapuram district as instructed by the agents, the TNPSC said in a release, adding that detailed inquiries with the staff involved in exam work had confirmed that manipulations happened in these two centres.
Shocked to find more than 35 candidates from just two centres among top 100 rank holders, other candidates raised suspicion and the TNPSC conducted an inquiry with more than 50 toppers who wrote the exam at the two centres. It also called candidates who did not qualify in the exam to know what happened. “It was found that answer sheets of 52 candidates, of 99, were manipulated by scamsters who shaded correct responses after the exam and 39 ranked within the top 100,” the release said.
The TNPSC said it had replaced the 39 candidates on the merit list with new candidates and that an FIR had been registered against 99 candidates and brokers. “It has been confirmed that manipulations did not take place in any other centre in the state. So, TNPSC will conduct counselling after the certificate verification. The commission will undertake reforms to prevent such incidents in future.”
More than 13 lakh candidates appeared for the Group IV exam on September 1, 2019 to fill 9,398 vacancies for posts of junior assistant and typist among others. The results were out on November 12, the shortest time taken for announcing the results.
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