TAUSEEF AHMAD
SRINAGAR, June 27: The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) has intensified its crackdown on the multi-layered Jammu and Kashmir Fire and Emergency Services recruitment scam, arresting five persons, including three serving government officials, in connection with the ongoing investigation into alleged paper leaks, manipulation of OMR answer sheets and irregular award of contracts to a blacklisted company.
The arrests were made on June 26 from different parts of Kashmir in connection with FIR No. 01/2025 registered at Police Station ACB Central Jammu. Those arrested have been identified as Yaqoob Dar, a resident of Botengo in Anantnag and a retired KAS officer who served as Technical Officer; Bilal Ahmad Shah of Dadsara Tral, presently serving as an Assistant Development Officer; Younis Ahmad Ganaie of the Fire and Emergency Services Department; Aijaz Amin Basu of Chanapora, Srinagar, a Statistical Assistant in the Planning Department; and Mohammad Afzal Dar of Zakura, Srinagar.
The arrests mark a significant development in a case that has emerged as one of the largest recruitment scandals in Jammu and Kashmir in recent years. The investigation is being carried out by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) under the supervision of ACB Anantnag and is focused on alleged irregularities in the recruitment of Firemen and Fireman Drivers conducted by the Fire and Emergency Services Department in 2020.
According to investigators, the recruitment process was allegedly compromised through a well-organised conspiracy involving the leakage of examination papers, manipulation of OMR answer sheets and digital tampering of recruitment records. The probe has revealed that several candidates who had secured extremely low marks in the written examination were illegally shown to have obtained exceptionally high scores after their answer sheets were altered. In some of the most startling instances uncovered during the investigation, candidates who had originally scored as low as 11 or 17 marks were allegedly awarded scores of around 90 marks, enabling them to secure government jobs ahead of more deserving candidates.
Officials familiar with the investigation said the manipulation was not limited to answer sheets alone. Evidence gathered so far points towards systematic interference in the recruitment process, allegedly aimed at favouring selected candidates, including relatives of departmental employees and individuals linked to influential networks. Investigators suspect that a combination of criminal conspiracy, abuse of official position and monetary considerations played a role in facilitating the fraudulent appointments.
The latest arrests come more than a year after the Anti-Corruption Bureau launched a detailed investigation into the recruitment process. Earlier, ACB teams conducted searches at six locations across the Union Territory after obtaining search warrants from a competent court. The raids covered residential premises, offices and government quarters linked to individuals under investigation. During these operations, officials seized electronic gadgets, digital devices, official records and several documents believed to contain crucial evidence regarding the alleged fraud. The forensic examination of the seized material is understood to have provided investigators with important leads relating to digital manipulation and the alteration of recruitment records.
Apart from the recruitment irregularities, investigators are also probing allegations that contracts connected with the recruitment process were awarded to a company that had already been blacklisted. The tendering aspect of the case has widened the scope of the investigation, with officials examining whether procurement procedures were deliberately bypassed to confer undue benefits upon specific entities.
The Fire and Emergency Services recruitment scam first came to light after complaints and preliminary inquiries raised serious questions about the transparency of the 2020 selection process. Subsequent investigations uncovered what authorities described as widespread and systematic manipulation. As the probe progressed, the government identified 106 appointments as fraudulent. Acting on these findings, the administration terminated the services of 103 appointees through Government Order No. 608-Home of 2025, while three others had already been removed after failing to complete mandatory recruitment formalities. The mass termination represented one of the most extensive actions taken against fraudulent government appointments in Jammu and Kashmir.
The Anti-Corruption Bureau has since expanded its investigation to examine the role of members of the Departmental Recruitment Board, officials associated with the technical committee, private individuals and beneficiaries who allegedly gained from the manipulated selection process. A chargesheet has already been filed in the case, while further investigation continues into the financial, technical and administrative aspects of the alleged conspiracy.
The government has maintained a firm stance on the issue, with Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha earlier assuring strict action against all those responsible for compromising the integrity of the recruitment process. In line with that commitment, authorities have already blacklisted a vendor and an individual allegedly linked to the scam, while disciplinary and criminal proceedings continue against several others.
With fresh arrests now made and investigators continuing to analyse digital evidence and financial records, officials believe the full extent of the conspiracy is yet to emerge. Sources indicated that further arrests and additional legal action cannot be ruled out as the SIT continues its probe into a scandal that has shaken public confidence in one of the Union Territory’s major recruitment exercises.
The Anti-Corruption Bureau has reiterated that all individuals found involved in the alleged fraud, irrespective of their position or influence, will be brought to justice as the investigation moves forward.
