The Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the Telangana State Public Service Commission (TSPSC) question paper leak reportedly came to know that the two main accused — Atla Rajashekhar Reddy and Pulidindi Praveen Kumar — spent time late in the office after the official working hours to carry out their conspiracy. The police also found that one of the accused lavishly spent the ill-gotten money, as stated in a report by The New Indian Express.
“Till March 6, Praveen kept with him Rs 6 lakh out of Rs 10 lakh he earned by selling question paper for Assistant Engineers’ exam. Later, he deposited Rs 6 lakh in his own account and Rs 3.5 lakh in that of his relative. He spent the remaining Rs 50,000 lavishly,” reliable sources said.
When the revelations were made
On March 11, it came to light that the question papers pertaining to the recruitment of Town Planning and Building Overseer posts were leaked. The preliminary probe revealed that Praveen and Rajashekhar sold the question papers and the duo along with seven others were arrested.
After obtaining custody for questioning, the SIT led by Additional Commissioner of Police (Crimes) AR Srinivas found that Praveen, who was the PA to the TSPSC secretary, and Rajashekhar Reddy, an outsourced employee of the commission, spent late hours in the office to copy the question papers pertaining to seven exams.
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According to sources, the police focused on the modus operandi adopted by the accused to steal the question papers from the TSPSC systems. The investigating team also focused on the bank transactions of the accounts of the duo and their close relatives.
The police are also probing into the technicalities such as the networking system in which Rajashekhar Reddy is said to be an expert and helped Praveen easily access highly confidential question papers. The SIT is also trying to find out from the accused as to whom they sold the question papers pertaining to Group 1 Prelims, AE, AEE and DAO posts.
The police are corroborating the information given by the accused with available scientific information such as call history, WhatsApp chat history, bank transactions, and Google tools. The police sources said that they are likely to arrest those who purchased question papers from the accused.
Meanwhile, it may be recalled that the SIT has registered a case under Section 409, 420, 120 (B) IPC & Sec 66 (b) (c) & 70 IT Act, Sec 8 of Prevention of Examinations Malpractices Act for (Data Breach) stealing and leaking TSPSC AE question papers for monetary benefits, as stated in a report by The New Indian Express.
