
Bihar 2023 police scam;ED conducts multiple searches
At least a dozen locations of private entities like agents, exam paper leak syndicate members and their associates in Patna and Nalanda in Bihar, Ranchi (Jharkhand), Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) and Kolkata (West Bengal) were raided under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the sources said.
A press in Kolkata in which the exam papers were printed was also covered by the investigators of the federal probe agency, they said.
The masterminds of this alleged scam are the same as that of the NEET UG paper leak 'scam' of 2024, they said.
The Bihar Police Constable 2023 recruitment was aimed to fill 21,391 vacancies across various units of the Bihar police.
The examination was conducted at 529 centres across 37 districts of Bihar on October 1, 2023 attracting over 18 lakh aspirants.
Following allegations of the exam paper leak, it was cancelled by the state central selection board of constables (CSBC) on October 3 that year.
The money laundering case stems from some Bihar Police (economic offences unit or EOU) FIRs. The ED suspects money laundering in this case as a gang of agents generated 'proceeds of crime' (illicit funds) by leaking the exam papers and selling it to aspirants and used the money given by the candidates to create personal assets.
Some Bihar police officials are also under the scanner of the ED, as per the sources.
The state police had arrested seven private people in this case, including three from West Bengal. An inter-state gang headed by Sanjeev Mukhiya was termed by the police as the perpetrators of this paper leak.
Mukhiya has worked as a technical assistant in a government college in Nalanda district. He is currently lodged in judicial custody.
The Bihar EOU found that an accused named Kaushik Kumar Kar had a Kolkata-based firm, Caltex Multiventure Pvt Ltd, and he was awarded the contract to print and supply the question papers for the constable recruitment examination.
However, it was discovered that Caltex Multiventure Pvt Ltd was a a one-room 'shell' company with no employees, and printing and supply of question papers was outsourced to a company named Blessing Secured Press Pvt Ltd, where Kar's wife was a director.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Hans India
20 minutes ago
- Hans India
Kerala nuns' arrest: Sessions court in Chhattisgarh declines bail plea, refers case to Bilaspur HC
Raipur/Thiruvananthapuram: In a setback for two Kerala-based nuns currently lodged in Durg jail, a sessions court on Wednesday declined to entertain their bail plea, directing the petitioners to approach the NIA-designated bench at the Chhattisgarh High Court in Bilaspur. The court ruled that it lacked jurisdiction to hear the bail application in the matter, which is being probed under the provisions of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) Act. Despite insistence from the nuns' counsel, the court dismissed the plea. Just before the sessions court began its hearing, a group of Bajarang Dal activists gathered and started shouting slogans against the nuns and the way they were trying to cover up a case that, according to them, involved human trafficking and forced religious conversion. The complainant in the case is Ravi Nigam. A battery of five lawyers represented him in court during the proceedings. Advocate Jaiswal, present in the court, said the sessions court is not competent to hear the case and asked them to approach the High Court. As the news came, the Bajarang Dal activists, waiting outside the court, erupted in celebration. The issue was raised in both houses of Parliament, though it was not taken up for discussion. Earlier, all MPs from Kerala staged a protest outside the parliament. Later, Congress-led UDF MPs called on Union Home Minister Amit Shah and briefed him on the matter. Senior lawmakers, including AICC general secretary K.C. Venugopal, have sought an appointment with Prime Minister Narendra Modi to bring the issue before him. Venugopal, speaking in the Lok Sabha, said this is a burning issue in Kerala. Centre must intervene as the Chhattisgarh Chief Minister is not acting responsibly, he said. "Spoke in Parliament demanding the immediate release of Sister Vandana and Sister Preethi belonging to the Assisi Sisters of Mary Immaculate, who were brutally attacked by Bajrang Dal goons in Durg in Chhattisgarh and later arrested by the police without any reason. Instead of upholding the Constitution, the Chhattisgarh CM is validating the mob narrative that took the law into their own hands for their hateful agenda. The PM and Kerala BJP wax eloquent about their newfound love for Christians, but in reality, have venom in their hearts against minorities," Venugopal posted on X. Earlier in the day, a delegation led by CPI(M) politburo member Brinda Karat and including MPs A.A. Rahim, K. Radhakrishnan, and Jose K. Mani visited the nuns in jail. Karat condemned the arrest, calling it a clear case of fabricated charges. 'The nuns are completely innocent. This is a targeted move against Christians. We demand their immediate release and quashing of the case,' she said. Back in Kerala, both the ruling LDF and the Congress-led UDF launched separate protests. Senior Congress leaders, including KPCC president K. Sudhakaran and Leader of Opposition V.D. Satheesan, marched to the Kerala Raj Bhavan, demanding urgent action. 'This is unacceptable. These nuns are known for their humanitarian work. The Centre must act decisively,' said Satheesan. Later in the evening, Church leaders and members of the Christian community will hold a protest march to the Raj Bhavan. The two nuns -- Sister Preeti Mary and Sister Vandana Francis -- belong to the Assisi Sisters of Mary Immaculate, a congregation under the Syro-Malabar Church in Alappuzha district. They had been working at a hospital in Agra. On July 26, while accompanying three women from Chhattisgarh's Narayanpur district to Agra for jobs as kitchen helpers in a convent, the nuns and a man, Sukhman Mandavi, were stopped at a Chhattisgarh railway station by Bajrang Dal activists and later taken into custody by police. They were produced before a local court and sent to judicial custody. With the sessions court now directing the matter to the High Court, the nuns will remain in jail until further orders.


New Indian Express
36 minutes ago
- New Indian Express
ED raids Hyderabad locations in Telangana sheep scam; loss may exceed Rs 1,000 crore
HYDERABAD: The Enforcement Directorate on Wednesday conducted searches at multiple locations in Hyderabad as part of a money laundering investigation into a sheep rearing and distribution "scam" worth crores of rupees that allegedly took place during the previous BRS regime, official sources said. At least eight locations in the city related to the beneficiaries and alleged middlemen involved in the scam apart from that of G Kalyan, OSD to former BRS minister Talasani Srinivasa Yadav, are being searched under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), they said. The probe stems from some state police FIRs. Sources said the ED has found that though the proceeds of crime stated in the FIRs was only Rs 2.1 crore, a CAG report has pegged the loss to the state government into crores of rupees. The CAG audit report for period ended March-2021 found several "irregularities" in the implementation of the flagship Sheep Rearing Development Scheme (SRDS) like non-maintenance of beneficiary wise details, improper record of invoices pertaining to transportation invoices and payments, payments against invoices containing fake/ passenger vehicles/ non-transport vehicle registration numbers, duplicate tags allotted to sheep units etc., the sources said. Allegations related to to sheep units allotted to dead/non-existent persons are also being probed by the ED. The CAG audit report is limited to only seven districts (out of the 33 in Telangana) wherein estimated loss to the state government is pegged at Rs 253.93 crore, the ED found. However, on a proportionate basis for all the 33 districts in Telangana, the loss is likely to exceed Rs 1,000 crore, the sources said.


News18
an hour ago
- News18
'No Witch-Hunting': Actor Prakash Raj On ED's Money Laundering Probe In Betting Case
Last Updated: Besides Raj, the ED had also summoned actors Rana Daggubati, Vijay Deverakonda and Lakshmi Manchu for questioning in the case Actor Prakash Raj on Wednesday appeared before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials in Hyderabad in a money laundering case linked to illegal online betting and gambling by certain platforms. After his questioning, Raj said he told ED that there is no 'witch hunting". 'This was a case of money laundering of betting apps, and it was something I did in 2016. On moral grounds, I did not pursue it, and I gave them information that I did not receive any money because I did not want to make money from that. They have taken all the details and have finished the enquiry. Officers are doing their job, and as a citizen, I am supposed to cooperate and answer their questions. There is no witch-hunting or political motivation in this," he added. #WATCH | Hyderabad, Telangana: As he leaves from the ED Office, actor Prakash Raj says, 'This was a case of money laundering of betting apps, and it was something I did in 2016. On moral grounds, I did not pursue it, and I gave them information that I did not receive any money… — ANI (@ANI) July 30, 2025 The actor, mainly popular in Telugu, Kannada and other South Indian films, appeared before the officials of the probe agency at its zonal office in Hyderabad. Besides Raj, the ED had also summoned actors Rana Daggubati, Vijay Deverakonda and Lakshmi Manchu for questioning in the case. The agency asked Daggubati (40) to appear before the zonal office here on July 23, Raj (60) on July 30, Deverakonda (36) on August 6 and Lakshmi (47) on August 13. The actors had 'endorsed" online betting apps allegedly involved in generating 'illicit" funds, official sources had said. However, the ED gave a fresh date of August 11 to actor Daggubati after he failed to appear on July 23, seeking deferment of the summons. The ED had taken cognisance of as many as five state police FIRs to register its case against these actors and a number of other celebrities and social media influencers. These individuals are suspected to have 'endorsed" online betting apps like Junglee Rummy, JeetWin, Lotus365, etc, for celebrity or endorsement fee, ED sources had said. These platforms are alleged to have generated 'illicit" funds, through illegal betting and gambling, worth crores of rupees, the sources had said. Some of these 'well-known" persons, the sources said, have earlier stated that they did not know the exact functioning of the apps and products dished out by them and claimed that they did not associate themselves with these platforms for any wrongdoing or illegal activity like betting. (with inputs from ANI, PTI) view comments Location : Hyderabad, India, India First Published: July 30, 2025, 15:56 IST Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.