In Odisha Crime Branch Custody, BSE Data Operator Reveals How He Leaked OTET Paper

Bhubaneswar: Data entry operator of Board of Secondary Education (BSE) Jitan Moharana has reportedly confessed to sending the Special Odisha Teacher Eligibility Test (OTET) question paper to Nayagarh in his vehicle by hiring a driver for Rs 1,500.

According to sources, Crime Branch (CB) of Odisha Police, which took him on remand on Monday, elicited this information during interrogation. The paper, in both pen drive and hard copy form, was then handed over to working president of state ex-cadre teachers’ association Bijaya Mishra, who is also in CB remand. He reportedly paid Rs 2 lakh for the paper.

So far, eight persons, including BSE vice-president Nihar Ranjan Mohanty, have been arrested in connection with the question paper leak. The agency is also planning to interrogate Mohanty in the second phase after completing the questioning of Moharana and Mishra.

The data entry operator had allegedly downloaded the question paper from the laptop of the BSE vice president before leaking it to others. Mohanty is accused of negligence as his failure to implement proper security measures allowed Moharana to access his laptop.

Meanwhile, the CB also quizzed BSE president Srikant Tarai to ascertain why and under what circumstances he allowed Mohanty to prepare the question papers in alleged violation of the board’s rules and regulations. The agency has also sought the help of the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) to investigate the financial transactions of the eight accused. It had attached their Aadhaar and PAN details in a letter sent to FIU on Sunday.

Investigators are also examining potential illicit connections between Mohanty and the owner of the Bhopal-based printing company responsible for printing the question papers, sources added.

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