Srinagar, 02 January 2025 – The Jammu and Kashmir Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) has detected paper leaks, mark tampering, and favoritism in the recruitment of Firemen and Fireman Drivers in the Fire & Emergency Services Department.
In a statement, the ACB said the inquiry revealed that unqualified candidates were fraudulently listed among the 690 selected recruits, including individuals with scores well below the cutoff.
Candidates who actually scored 11, 17, and 24 marks in the written examination were shown to have scored 90, it said.
Besides, relatives of F&ES officials and clusters of candidates from the same localities were reportedly given undue preference.
“Discrepancies in the answer sheets further exposed the manipulation that benefited ineligible individuals.”
The recruitment drive, initially advertised in 2013, was marred by multiple cancellations over the years due to procedural flaws.
In 2020, a tender process to engage a Transparent Recruitment Process (TRP) agency was allegedly manipulated. M/s LMES IT LLP, the second-lowest bidder, was controversially awarded the contract despite not meeting the tender requirements.
The firm was found to be a newly established entity with no proven experience and strong connections to a resource person from the agency involved in earlier disputes, it said.
The ACB’s investigation also revealed violations of established procurement guidelines. “Central Vigilance Commission norms mandate awarding contracts to the lowest bidder, but the recruitment board bypassed this requirement without explanation. Members of the Departmental Recruitment Board and Technical Committee are suspected of conspiring with M/s LMES IT LLP to secure the contract and falsify records.”
These findings have led to an FIR being lodged against officials involved in the recruitment process, including the DRB members and the firm’s primary partner, Maharaj Krishan Wali.
The investigation, officials say, aims to uncover the full extent of wrongdoing in what appears to be a coordinated effort to exploit the recruitment process for personal gain.