Forest guard exam 2022 paper was leaked: Rajasthan police

JAIPUR: In yet another major embarrassment for Rajasthan govt's recruitment agencies, police in Banswara district confirmed on Sunday that the question paper for Rajasthan Forest Guard Recruitment Exam - 2022 was leaked. Police are set to register an FIR in this connection against some candidates who allegedly had access to the question paper about an hour and a half before the exam's scheduled beginning.
Some members of the paper leak mafia have also been identified, and the cops are currently on their trail, said sources. The confirmation of this paper leak has also strengthened suspicions that the question paper of the REET-2022 exam might have been leaked from the area.
The state govt on Saturday put on awaiting posting orders two district education officers (DEO) of Banswara and Jalore districts. Banswara DEO (primary) Shafaq Anjum and Jalore DEO Bhairam were removed from their posts. While no reason was specified in the order issued for their removal, sources said this could be due to their supervisory negligence in document verification for candidates who passed the REET-2022.
Rajasthan Forest Guard Recruitment Exam - 2022, conducted by Rajasthan Staff Selection Board (RSSB) on Nov 12 and Nov 13, 2022, was for about 2,300 vacancies, against which over 16 lakh applications were received.
A police team comprising DSPs Kushalgarh Shivanya Singh and Bagidora Vinay Choudhary that was investigating some gangs allegedly involved in arranging dummy candidates first got wind of paper leak in this exam and gathered inputs till it was confirmed.
“Some candidates were under our scanner. We came to know that paper leak gangs leaked the papers for both the morning and afternoon shifts of the forest guard exam. In both cases, the people involved in the paper leak showed the candidates the paper on their mobile phones,” said DSP Shivanya Singh.
To get access to the leaked question paper, each candidate paid Rs 8 lakh to the paper leak gangs, she said. Some agents who acted as mediators between the candidates and the paper leak gangs are under police scanner currently, she added. Some of these agents are the same people who had ar ranged dummy candidates for numerous govt recruitment exams in the area, including REET 2022 and the exam for village development officers, she said.
Police are now investigating the source of the leak and hope to make arrests soon. Sources said the paper leak gangs had infiltrated all stages of the forest guard exam and the recruitment process. They allegedly not only arranged dummy candidates but also were involved in leaking papers. Once the candidates passed the exam, they would also help them get their documents verified, said sources.