A man has been arrested in Bareilly for impersonating a candidate during a Home Guard recruitment exam, highlighting concerns about exam integrity and impersonation attempts.
During a written examination for the recruitment of Home Guards in Bareilly on Sunday, a young man was caught taking the test on behalf of another candidate, the police said.
The examination was conducted by the Uttar Pradesh Police Recruitment and Promotion Board in two shifts on April 25, April 26 and April 27.
Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Anurag Arya said that during the Home Guard Enrollment Examination 2025, the officer in charge of the examination centre at Sahu Gopinath Kanya Inter College noticed suspicious behaviour from a candidate during the first shift (from 10 am to 12 noon).
Upon growing suspicious during the biometric verification process, the said candidate was subjected to a thorough examination, during which he was identified as Anurag (27), a resident of Hardoi district of Uttar Pradesh, the officer added.
Further investigation revealed that on the previous day, Anurag had also taken the first-shift examination at Darbari Lal Sharma Inter College (Pilibhit Road, Rithaura), impersonating another candidate named Dharmendra Singh. This deliberate act was an attempt to gain an unfair advantage, police said, adding that during interrogation, the accused admitted to having committed the aforementioned act.
Based on a written complaint lodged by the inspector in-charge, a case has been registered at Kotwali police station, Bareilly, under Sections 319(2) (cheating by personation), 318(4) (cheating), 340(2) (forged document or electronic record and using it as genuine), and 336(3) (forgery) of the BNS, as well as under the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024, police said.
The accused has since been arrested and remanded in judicial custody.