SIT arrests education dept staffer in HP constable paper leak case

The special investigation team (SIT) of Himachal Pradesh Police has arrested an education department employee who was allegedly involved in the constable paper leak from Kolar in Paonta Sahib subdivision of Sirmaur district, officials said on Sunday.

The accused has been identified as Ramandeep Singh, a superintendent ( Grade- II) posted at Dadahu, who was arrested on Friday evening.

The police alleged that he was the mastermind of the Sirmaur module of paper leak racket.

A case under sections 420 and 120-B of the Indian Penal Code for cheating and criminal conspiracy has been registered against him, said Sirmaur SP Omapati Jamwal, adding that a local court has sent him to fourday police custody.

Ramandeep was also involved in the paper leak previously and the case is pending in a court.

The accused had allegedly taken Rs 8 lakh from the two candidates from Sirmaur district after some relatives of the candidates approached him to help their wards to clear the written exam.

The candidates were taken to Ramgarh in Haryana where they were provided the question paper before screening exam held on March 27.

He had obtained anticipatory bail from the court about a month and a half ago but it was cancelled later.

He was on the run since then. The SIT has, so far, arrested more than 170 people in the case, including candidates, their kin, agents and kingpins.

Meanwhile, the document verification of the candidates who have cleared the written exam re-conducted on July 3 will begin on Monday.

More than 12,000 of the 69,000 odd candidates who appeared in the exam have cleared the test.