Punjab Police bust BFUHS pharmacy exam cheating racket; 35 arrested, no paper leak found

Chandigarh: Punjab Police busted an interstate cheating racket allegedly operating from Haryana's Bhiwani and arrested 35 people, including 10 handlers and 25 candidates, in connection with cheating during the Baba Farid University of Health Sciences (BFUHS) pharmacy examination.

Addressing a press conference in Chandigarh on Friday, Punjab Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains said the investigation had established that the case was not a paper leak but a highly organised, technology-driven cheating racket.

He said the Punjab Police had exposed a network that allegedly used sophisticated electronic devices to help candidates cheat in examinations.

Minister rules out paper leak

The minister alleged that the syndicate was being operated by a mastermind based in Haryana's Bhiwani and criticised the Haryana government for allegedly failing to curb organised examination fraud. He asserted that the Bhagwant Mann government would not allow anyone to defame Punjab's education system. Bains said the accused allegedly used modified Kechaoda K33 mobile phones, hidden wireless earpieces and other advanced gadgets to communicate answers to candidates during the examination.

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He said the network had been operating from Haryana before attempting to expand its activities to Punjab. He also highlighted the Punjab government's education reforms, saying the state had recorded significant improvement in competitive examination results. According to him, 361 students qualified JEE (Main), 64 cleared JEE (Advanced) and 882 students qualified NEET in 2026. Bains added that the school education department was exploring the use of blockchain technology to make examinations more secure and tamper-proof.

Police uncover interstate cheating network

Inspector General of Police (Faridkot Range) Nilambri Jagdale said the operation was carried out jointly by the Counter Intelligence wing and police teams from Faridkot and Ferozepur ranges after receiving intelligence inputs on July 19 about a gang planning to facilitate cheating in the BFUHS pharmacy examination. She said police raided a house in Society Nagar, Faridkot, which had allegedly been converted into a control room equipped with wireless transmitters, modified mobile phones and communication devices.

According to the IGP, investigators identified 13 handlers, including eight from Haryana and Rajasthan and five from Punjab. So far, 10 handlers and 25 candidates have been arrested, while three handlers and four candidates are still absconding.

Spy cameras and wireless devices used

Jagdale said the investigation found that a candidate from Bhiwani allegedly captured images of the question paper using a spy camera soon after the examination began. The images were allegedly sent to a handler in Bhiwani, who solved the paper and relayed the answers to the Faridkot control room. From there, handlers allegedly dictated the answers to candidates inside examination centres through concealed wireless devices.

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She mentioned that over 200 Punjab Police personnel were deployed at examination centres after the intelligence inputs were received. Supervisors, controllers and observers were alerted to conduct thorough frisking of candidates. Police recovered 38 modified Kechaoda mobile phones, including 25 from candidates and 13 from handlers, along with 21 concealed wireless earpieces and two vehicles allegedly used in the operation.

Investigation continues across the state

The IGP clarified that no government employee, examination official or centre supervisor had been found involved in the case. She reiterated that the investigation had found no evidence of a paper leak and that the cheating network operated entirely from outside the examination system using advanced technology. She further informed that raids were ongoing in Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan to arrest the remaining accused, adding that Punjab Police had adopted a zero-tolerance policy against organised cheating and would take strict action against everyone involved.