The CBI on Tuesday conducted searches at 36 locations, including the premises of former Jammu & Kashmir Services Selection Board (JKSSB) Chairman Khalid Jahangir, over alleged irregularities in the recruitment process of sub-inspectors in the Union Territory. The agency also searched the premises of JKSSB Controller of Examinations Ashok Kumar.

The searches were spread across Jammu, Srinagar; Karnal, Mahendergarh, Rewari in Haryana; Gandhidham in Gujarat; Delhi; Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh and Bengaluru in Karnataka.

Besides Jahangir and Kumar, the premises of their associates domiciled in Haryana, certain teachers, and some serving/retired officials of Jammu & Kashmir Police, including a DSP and CRPF officials were searched in an on-going investigation of a case related to the recruitment scam. Incriminating documents and digital evidence have so far been recovered during searches, the CBI said.

The CBI probe has revealed that the candidates were made to pay `20-30 lakh to the accused for accessing the question paper before commencement of the examination.

The CBI registered a case on August 3 on the request of J&K Government against 33 accused, including then medical officer, BSF Frontier Headquarters, Paloura, Dr Karnail Singh; Ashok Kumar, ASI, Jammu & Kashmir Police; and Ashwani Kumar, former CRPF official.

Avinash Gupta, owner of EDUMAX Classes, Akhnoor, Akshay Kumar, Manager of EDUMAX Classes, Roshan Bral, teacher, Narayan Dutt, then member Jammu & Kashmir Administrative Service (JKKAS), Bishan Dass, then Under Secretary, JKSSB, Anju Raina, then Section Officer, JKSSB and MeritTrac Services Private Limited, Bengaluru have also been named as accused in the case, it said. The examination took place on March 27 and results were declared on June 4.

The J&K Government had constituted an Inquiry Committee to look into the allegation of irregularities in the examinations.

“It was alleged that the accused entered into conspiracy among officials of JKSSB, Bengaluru-based private company, beneficiary candidates and others, and caused gross irregularities in conduct of written examination for the posts of sub-inspectors,” the agency said in a statement.

CBI raids 36 places in J&K SI recruitment exam scam It was further alleged that there was an abnormally high percentage of selected candidates from Jammu, Rajouri and Samba districts. Violation of rules by JKSSB was allegedly found in assigning the task of setting the question paper to Bengaluru-based private company MeritTrac Services Private Limited, it added.

“It was alleged that the accused entered into conspiracy amongst officials of JKSSB, Bengaluru-based private company, beneficiary candidates and others, and caused gross irregularities in the conduct of written examination for the posts of sub-inspectors,” the CBI said in its statement

 Searches were earlier conducted on August 5, 2022 at 30 locations, including at Jammu, Srinagar and Bengaluru at the premises of accused persons.