One person who first shared the Q-paper in PDF format taken into custody

Mysore/Mysuru: In a major breakthrough in the case of question paper sales racket at Karnataka State Open University (KSOU), Mysuru, the City Crime Branch (CCB) sleuths have traced the source of question paper leak to Chamarajanagar Exam Centre.

During investigation, CCB personnel have unearthed that, it was from Chamarajanagar Exam Centre that the paper of ‘Computer in Business’ subject in PDF format was shared on WhatsApp among the students. The investigators who traced the source of leak through technical investigation, later visited Chamarajanagar Exam Centre yesterday and also took the person who had sent the question paper on WhatsApp into their custody, besides seizing the documents.

It has also emerged during the probe that, after the paper was leaked from Chamarajanagar Centre, the PDF format of the paper was also leaked from Mangaluru Study Centre. Acting on the clues gathered on the basis of call detail records of cell phone, the investigators have taken several persons related to the case into their custody and inquiring them.

As is the procedure, barring  the Registrar (Evaluation) of KSOU, who is responsible to conduct the exams of all Degree, Post-Graduate and Diploma courses, along with preparing the question papers, evaluation and announcement of results, the role of Vice-Chancellor, Registrar (Administration) and Dean is restricted to just supervising the process.

Following this, it has become clear for CCB men during the course of preliminary investigation that the question paper couldn’t have been shared on WhatsApp without coming to the notice of Registrar (Evaluation), who is authorised to rope in the senior Professors to prepare the question paper.

As the probe gets deeper with the use of technology, it is learnt that, the question papers were sold extensively by using out-sourced and temporary staff of KSOU. It is suspected that, including the question paper of  ‘Computer in Business’ subject, the question papers of all other Degree courses, of all the years have also been sold.

Following the unravelling of the scam, some of the persons have deleted WhatsApp chats, while some others have destroyed their mobile SIM cards.

CCB sleuths visited the Administrative Office, Pareeksha Bhavan and Registrar (Evaluation) Office at Muktagangothri campus of KSOU yesterday too and collected the information related to exam process, those related to preparation of question papers, printing press, conditions agreed upon to maintain secrecy and related information.

CCB Officers will be visiting Mangaluru tomorrow (Sept. 25), where they will be inspecting Regional Centre there.

The CCB is preparing to take suspects into custody with the help of local Police and inquire them, it is said.