Arunachal Pradesh Capital police have arrested a candidate for using unfair means in the Arunachal Pradesh Staff Selection Board’s (APSSB) Surveyor Recruitment examination. Meanwhile, two others have also been apprehended for helping her at the Dera Natung Government College (DNGC) examination centre.
The candidate has been identified as Takoni Dodum (28), while those who assisted her were her cousin Sunny Dodum (38) and his friend Neyaz Ahmed (31).
ICR SP Jimmy Chiram informed that the APSSB conducted its recruitment examinations on 17 and 18 July.
“While the examination on the 17th went without any incident in three of the APSSB examination centres, on 18 July, at around 12:30 pm, we received information that a female candidate at the DNCG centre was found using a mobile phone during the examination for cheating purposes,” he informed.
The police received a written FIR from centre superintendent N Pramanik that a candidate in Room No 25 of the DNGC centre was engaged in using a mobile phone to cheat.
“As soon as we received the information, we registered a case under Sections 417 (for cheating) and 188 (disobeying government order) IPC,” the SP said.
SI AK Jha immediately visited the exam centre and recorded the statements of key witnesses, and seized a blue Samsung S10 mobile phone used by the candidate.
“The police also seized the phones of Sunny and Ahmed, who used their phones to search for answers through the Google search engine. A notebook where the answers were being written and photos of them being sent to the candidate was also seized. While the pages had been ripped off from the notebook, the pen impression is there and will serve as proof,” the SP said.
He also pointed out that the centre had invigilators, magistrates as well as observers on duty. The female candidate was also frisked, but the phone was not detected at the time.
The police also seized the 28 jammers installed at the examination centre, in order to ascertain how the mobile phone was working despite the jammers. The camera footage of the room has also been seized to ascertain how the entire incident took place.
The arrested persons were later released on bail as the section under which the offence falls is bailable.
On the lapse in security, the SP said that necessary action will be initiated against those who were stationed there for frisking the candidates. “The phone has definitely been used for two hours and we will look into the footage of how this was possible,” Chiram said.
Appealing to all the candidates to follow the rules of the examinations, the SP said that “such attempts to subvert the process of the examination should not be done as they not only harm their chances but also the chances of genuine candidates. This may be a small incident for one person, but it is a serious incident for the entire system, which is why the police have taken the matter very seriously. People should be aware that such attempts will not be taken lightly.”