RANCHI: Making a fresh move, the Enforcement Directorate has registered an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) to probe alleged money laundering linked to irregularities in the second Civil Services Examination (JPSC-2) conducted by the Jharkhand Public Service Commission.
All 60 individuals earlier named as accused by the Central Bureau of Investigation have been included in the ECIR. According to the ED, ineligible candidates were illegally declared successful through manipulation of written examination and interview marks, generating proceeds of crime.
ED sources said the accused include six JPSC officials, 28 candidates who were wrongly selected and later became officers, 25 examiners, and the manager of M/s Global Informatics. Among the former candidates are officers of the State Administrative Service, several of whom have since been promoted to the Additional District Magistrate (ADM) rank. Similarly, multiple officers selected into the State Police Service (DSP) have subsequently been promoted to the Indian Police Service (IPS).
The ED will now investigate the money laundering angle against all those named in the ECIR under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The case dates back to allegations of irregularities in JPSC-2, following which the state government had initially ordered a probe by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB). With the investigation making little headway, a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) was filed in the Jharkhand High Court, which later transferred the probe to the CBI.
The CBI registered a preliminary inquiry in 2012 and, after prolonged legal hurdles, filed its chargesheet in 2024—nearly 12 years later. All those accused by the CBI are currently out on bail. With the ED’s registration of an ECIR, the case has now formally entered the money laundering investigation stage.