JSSC CGL 2023 Paper Leak: Kingpins Memorised Leaked Questions to Candidates in Nepal Resorts, Major Money Trail Unearthed

RANCHI: In a major breakthrough into the Jharkhand Competitive Examination (JSSC CGL 2023) paper leak scandal, police investigation logs have revealed a highly organized cross-border operation where massive financial transactions took place to leak exam papers and answer keys using remote hideouts in Nepal.

The Nepal Racket and Memorisation Camps

According to the confessional statement of accused Kundan Kumar, a constable posted with the IRB-08 in Godda, the gang orchestrated a large-scale operation to take candidates outside Jharkhand before the examination to avoid local monitoring. Candidates from Koderma and Hazaribagh were routed via Patna, Muzaffarpur, and Motihari across the Raxaul border into Birgunj, Nepal. They were accommodated in local hotels, including the Hotel Welcome Nepal and another transit lodge opposite the Birgunj Bus Park. Reports show that over 120 individuals were tracked staying at transit locations like Matri Bhawan in Asansol during the examination window.

Once at the camps, the kingpin of the racket, Sandeep Tripathi (alias Shashibhushan Dikshit), arrived with leaked question sets. Co-conspirators Manoj Yadav and Hariher Singh (alias Hari or Ansari) gathered the candidates in a single room, distributed A4-sized sheets containing printed questions and answers, and forced them to memorize the material. The gang targeted a 135-question paper key, out of which 120 answers matched the final exam paper perfectly. Original educational certificates and blank security checks were forcefully collected from the candidates as collateral before they were allowed to see the keys.

Extortion During Certificate Verification

The investigation highlights that following the declaration of results, the mastermind Sandeep Tripathi stayed at the Jade Square Hotel in Hinoo, Ranchi, during the official JSSC CGL certificate verification period between December 10 and December 20, 2024. Operating from rooms 601 and 504 under direct bookings, the gang set up an extortion camp to retrieve their illegal balance payments.

Tripathi aggressively called candidates over WhatsApp using international virtual networks or modified routing systems, demanding up to ₹20-22 lakhs per candidate for clearing the exam. Candidates were told that half the amount had to be paid immediately upon cross-checking their marks, or their original mark sheets would be withheld. In one instance, a dispute arose when the gang accidentally threatened an unrelated student named Arvind after mixing up mobile numbers.

Deep Money Trail and Fraudulent Accounts
Financial tracking by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) has uncovered layered accounts used to siphon off illegal funds. Large cash payments and UPI transfers were made by candidates like Dayanand Yadav, Naveen Kumar Yadav, Sunil Kumar Dangi, Krishna Snehi, and Vibhuti Aman. Sums ranging from ₹50,000 to ₹3,05,000 were routinely funneled into an SBI account held by Kanchan Kumari (wife of accused Kundan Kumar) and a bank account registered under the dummy name Santosh Kumar Choubey, which was directly handled by Sandeep Tripathi.

Furthermore, illegal commissions worth 5% were processed using corporate bank accounts linked to dummy enterprises like Rishabdew Construction and Scrapways, registered with Canara Bank. The conspirators communicated strictly using the encrypted ‘Zangi’ mobile application on instructions from senior handlers to stay untraceable by local cyber cells.

Wider Investigation and Institutional Inquiry
As public outrage intensified and legal cases were formalized in court, the remaining payment channels collapsed, leading to panic within the cartel. Key operators like Vinay Sah and Anish Kumar went underground. Before their arrest, several suspects systematically smashed their mobile devices and threw their SIM cards from moving trains to clear evidence logs.

The state enforcement apparatus has now launched an extensive multi-state lookup. The SIT has approached the Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission (JSSC) under the statutory mandates of the Jharkhand Competitive Examination Act 2023 to demand complete transparency regarding the security protocols of their external printing press agency.

Authorities are seeking detailed logs on how the question papers were packaged, transported from the printing press to the district strongrooms, and eventually distributed to various exam centers. State police have further requisitioned complete Mobile BTS Dump data across target areas including Kolkata Salt Lake, Webel Technology Limited, Patna, Ranchi, Asansol, and Gorakhpur to track down the remaining network fugitives.