Four Sent to Judicial Custody Over Exam Cheating Attempt at IIT-Powai
Four candidates from Haryana were remanded to 14 days of judicial custody on Friday following five days in police custody over an alleged cheating attempt during a recruitment examination held at Kendriya Vidyalaya in IIT-Powai.
The examination, conducted on August 9 for Central Sanskrit University, was held to fill non-teaching multi-tasking staff posts in Group D, including positions for peons and guards.
Powai police identified the four accused candidates as Devendra Singh, Bhoop Singh, Ravi Singh, and Ravindra Singh. Following their apprehension, officers recovered seven highly modified mobile devices.
According to investigators, the seized equipment had been extensively altered. The devices lacked screens, keyboards, and protective outer casings, consisting solely of exposed circuit boards equipped with SIM card slots and small wired batteries that could easily be hidden within clothing. The units operated without speakers or vibrating motors.
The system was paired with nano Bluetooth earbuds that were inserted deep into the candidates' ear canals using magnets to keep them entirely invisible during the exam. In one candidate's case, doctors had to be called in to remove a micro Bluetooth device that had become lodged inside the ear.
The cheating setup also featured shirt-button-sized micro-cameras capable of capturing and streaming live images of the question paper directly to an accomplice stationed outside the exam venue.
The operation unraveled during the test when invigilators noticed a candidate making unusual body movements. The candidate was reportedly struggling to establish an electronic connection due to signal jammers installed at the centre.
Police confirmed that no question paper leak occurred during the incident. Following the initial arrests, three unidentified individuals abandoned similar electronic devices outside the examination hall.
Deputy Commissioner of Police Datta Nalawade stated that investigators are currently tracing the equipment suppliers to identify the wider network involved in the operation. All four accused have been sent to jail for 14 days.
