MUMBAI: Mumbai Police on Tuesday arrested a candidate who secured the seventh rank in the Maharashtra Public Service Commission’s (MPSC) Drug Inspector (Group-B) examination in connection with the alleged question paper leak, taking the total number of arrests in the case to seven.Rutuja Patil was arrested by the Mumbai Crime Branch’s Property Cell from Nandurbar, officials said, news agency PTI reported.Police alleged that Patil had received the leaked question paper before the examination. She was allegedly advised to deliberately answer 10 questions incorrectly to avoid raising suspicion.Patil was subsequently produced before a court and remanded to the custody of the Mumbai Crime Branch, officials said.Her arrest comes days after the Crime Branch arrested six persons, including three MPSC officials, in connection with the alleged leak of the question paper for the Drug Inspector (Group-B) screening examination conducted on March 22.The other accused have been identified as MPSC assistant section officers Vishweshwar Dattatraya Nakate and Gopal Bhattu Marathe, MPSC under secretary Abhijit Ganpatrao Lendwe, Kautilya Academy director Pravin Dilip Patil, and alleged co-conspirators Amrut Namdeo Patil and Lokesh alias Gaurav Rajendra Patil.According to the Crime Branch, the accused allegedly accessed the examination questions before the test, compiled them into a separate set and distributed them among unauthorised persons, PTI reported.The examination was conducted for recruitment to Drug Inspector (Group-B) posts under the Maharashtra food and drug administration department.Following a preliminary inquiry that found a breach in the confidentiality of the examination process, the MPSC cancelled the recruitment process and announced that a fresh examination would be conducted.The commission said the decision was taken to ensure a fair and equal opportunity for all candidates and to safeguard the integrity, transparency and impartiality of its examinations.The screening examination was held offline at six divisional headquarters across Maharashtra on March 22.The results were declared on June 12, after which 506 candidates were found eligible for the interview stage. Of these, 488 candidates appeared for interviews held between July 1 and 22.The MPSC later published a provisional general merit list of 488 candidates, including 485 who were found eligible for appointment.However, complaints alleging irregularities in the screening examination were received between July 22 and 26 from candidates and public representatives.The complaints alleged that some candidates had received the question paper, or questions from it, before the examination and that the material had subsequently been circulated through electronic platforms.The case has been registered under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Maharashtra Prevention of Malpractices at Competitive Examinations Act and the Prevention of Corruption Act.The charges include cheating, criminal breach of trust, criminal conspiracy and corruption by public servants.(With agency inputs)
