BHOPAL: One of the prime kingpins of the recently busted Madhya Pradesh Police Constable Recruitment Exam 2023 Aadhaar-manipulated multiple impersonation racket wasn’t new to the world of government recruitment examination frauds.
Carrying a Rs 10,000 bounty on his arrest announced by northern MP’s Sheopur district police, government school teacher-turned-alleged exam fraudster Amitabh Rawat has been accused in the past as well in cases about examination frauds, not just in his home state of Madhya Pradesh, but also in neighbouring Uttar Pradesh.
Rawat, whose wife is an elected village sarpanch in the native Morena district of MP’s Gwalior-Chambal region, was last arrested in February 2024 from Jhansi by the UP STF and Jhansi Police in connection with the alleged leak of the UP Police Constable Recruitment Exam 2024.
But it wasn’t the first time that Rawat was arrested by any state police in connection with an alleged examination-related fraud case. Back in 2017, he was arrested in his native MP in connection with the multi-layered Vyapam scam case for arranging proxy candidates or ‘solvers’ to take government recruitment exams in place of actual beneficiaries.
After being lodged in a jail in Gwalior district until 2020, he was granted bail by the MP High Court.
According to sources investigating the recently busted MP Police Constable Recruitment Aadhaar-manipulated impersonation racket, Rawat is believed to have been involved in frauds across several recruitment examinations in Madhya Pradesh using various cheating methods, including proxy candidates, bypassing biometric tests, paper leaks and screen sharing (in online exams),” the official said.
According to sources part of the ongoing probe, the 48-year-old Rawat allegedly headed one of three inter-state rackets that were engaged in the fraud in the 2023 MP Police Recruitment Exams written test. The other two rackets were headed by Morena district-based Shyam Rawat and Ashok Gurjar.
Just like Amitabh Rawat, his caste man Shyam Rawat is also absconding and carries a similar Rs 10,000 reward on his arrest.
All three rackets arranged solvers (proxy candidates) from Bihar and MP to take the written exam, which was held in 2023 on different dates across MP, in place of the actual candidates.
This was done by replacing the picture and biometric (fingerprint) data in the actual candidate’s Aadhaar ID with the picture and fingerprints of the solver just before the written exam.
The three rackets had links with dedicated Aadhaar ID manipulation operatives, who used login IDs and passwords of Aadhaar centres in MP, Delhi and UP, and controlled them remotely using desktop applications like AnyDesk.
Two of the masterminds who worked with multiple Aadhaar centres in MP and outside included Surendra Kushwah – who worked as the Aadhaar ID facilitator for the Amitabh Rawat-led racket – and Kanhaiya Dhakad, who performed the same role for Shyam Rawat’s racket.
While Surendra Kushwah (who has already been arrested) used login IDs and passwords of registered and authorised Aadhaar ID centres in Chhatarpur, Narsinghpur and other districts of MP, as well as Delhi, Kanhaiya Dhakad, who worked with Shyam Rawat’s racket, used the login credentials of Aadhaar centres particularly in the Gwalior-Chambal region of MP, especially Shivpuri district.
Dhakad, who hails from MP’s Shivpuri district, along with his family members, operated an Aadhaar registration and updating kiosk in Shivpuri between 2011 and 2023, and knew every nut and bolt related to Aadhaar IDs.
After 2023, he began using login IDs and passwords of other registered Aadhaar registration centres in MP to assist the recruitment exam impersonation rackets, particularly the one headed by Amitabh Rawat.
“Dhakad, like the racketeer Amitabh Rawat, carried a reward of Rs 10,000 on arrest. He was arrested on Monday, making him the 12th man to be arrested in three cases of the MP Police Constable 2023 Recruitment Exam fraud. We’re hopeful that his questioning in the coming days will lead to big disclosures,” Sheopur district police superintendent Virendra Jain told TNIE on Tuesday.
As per sources connected with the ongoing investigations, Amitabh Rawat’s racket, by working with Dhakad and aides, might have managed to get more than 50 candidates to pass the 2023 MP Police Constable Recruitment written exam and qualify for the physical proficiency test (PPT) conducted in 2024. In return, Rawat charged sums ranging from Rs 10-15 lakh from each candidate.
The solvers who appeared in the written exam in place of actual candidates received Rs 1 to Rs 4 lakh per selected candidate, while Aadhaar manipulators like Dhakad received between Rs 10,000 to Rs 25,000 per candidate.
So far, more than 20 cases have been registered in around ten districts of MP in connection with the Constable Recruitment Exam fraud, and over 25 individuals – including actual beneficiary candidates, solvers, and Aadhaar centre operators – have been arrested.