Shimla, May 20 (PTI) Eight people, including a woman, were arrested and sent to police remand for cheating during the Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti (NVS) Non-Teaching Junior Secretariat Service Examination held two days ago, police said on Tuesday.
The accused, arrested from the examination centre at Chapslee School in Shimla on Sunday, will remain in police custody till Thursday, they said.
A total of 39 candidates -- including five women from Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi -- were booked under relevant sections of the Public Examination (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act 2024 for alleged cheating during the NVS recruitment exam from six centres in Shimla.
According to police, invigilators at the New Shimla examination centre got suspicious when a candidate kept going to the toilet several times. Upon inspection, a small spy earpiece and a bluetooth device was found in his possession.
Invigilators found electronic devices from candidates in other centres as well.
The NVS exam for non-teaching posts is being held across the country to fill up around 1,377 vacant posts.
Police said the case pertains to organised and deliberate malpractice during a government recruitment examination, which is a serious offense with far-reaching implications.
The nature of the crime suggests the involvement of a well-planned network aimed at manipulating the examination system for unlawful gains, they said.
Given the gravity of the matter, a special investigation team headed by an Additional Superintendent of Police-rank officer has been constituted to probe the case.
"Efforts are afoot to identify and trace the main conspirators, including the masterminds of the racket who orchestrated this cheating," police added.