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A Punjab Vigilance Bureau (VB) preliminary inquiry has revealed selective leaks of question papers of recruitment tests for gazetted and non-gazetted officers by an organised gang. The paper’s price is Rs 20 to Rs 30 lakh. The appointment of 682 persons selected on the basis of one such entrance test conducted by Panjab University (PU) in November 2015 on behalf of the department of local bodies has been put on hold. The PU has also been barred from holding further tests for the Punjab government. “We have directed the VB to bring all those involved in the scam to book,” Punjab deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal told HT. “The recruitment test conducted for patwaris is also under the scanner as we have received a complaint,” added Sukhbir. The probe, being monitored by the offices of the chief minister and the deputy chief minister, points to the selective leaking of question papers — to a handful of candidates, who then sell off the paper further to other candidates. The bureau has questioned members of the PU staff and four candidates, all among the toppers in the test. Other than putting on hold the recruitment of 682 persons–including subdivisional officers (SDOs) and junior engineers (JEs)–the university has been barred from holding the second test for selecting 1,200 patwaris. The first test to shortlist candidates is over already. The staff at the University Institute of Applied Management Sciences (UIAMS), which has been conducting these examinations for the Punjab government since 2008, denies that question papers were leaked out. UIAMS chief coordinator Pradeep Sharma said, “Ours system is foolproof but since an inquiry is on, we’ll cooperate with the VB.”