Someone Sat the Bank Exam in Another Person’s Place? CBI Arrests Four in Impersonation Racket: What the Law Says

What happened?

According to reports by ThePrint (PTI), Asianet Newsable (ANI) and The Indian Awaaz, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested four people. One of them is a Central GST (CGST) inspector.

The CBI’s Special Task Branch in Mumbai carried out raids in Delhi, Bihar, Haryana and West Bengal. The case began with a complaint from the Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS).

The CBI says the group allegedly entered several stages of bank recruitment by physically posing as candidates. This includes written exams and interviews. It calls the group a habitual impersonation syndicate.

The CBI says the investigation is still going on. It wants to find the role of others. The reports do not name the arrested people or the exams.

Is taking an exam for someone else a crime?

Yes. If the allegations are proved, it can be cheating by personation. Personation means pretending to be another person.

Section 319 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (BNS) covers it. It applies if a person cheats by pretending to be someone else, or by knowingly putting one person in place of another. The old IPC number was Section 419.

Section 318 of the BNS covers cheating in general. It means deceiving someone to make them do, or not do, something they would not have done otherwise.

The reports did not list the sections in this FIR. These are the ones that commonly apply to such acts.

What is the punishment? Is it bailable?

Under Section 319(2), cheating by personation carries up to 5 years in prison, or a fine, or both. It is cognizable (police can act without a court’s permission). It is bailable (bail is a right).

Under Section 318(2), simple cheating carries up to 3 years, or a fine, or both. It is non-cognizable and bailable.

The final sections depend on the FIR and the evidence. Other offences, such as forgery of documents, may be added if the facts support them. Special laws on unfair means in public exams may also apply, but the reports do not say.

Who is guilty: the impersonator, the candidate, or both?

The law can reach more than one person. The one who sits in the exam can be charged. So can the candidate who arranged it, if it is proved.

Anyone who helped, or who was part of a plan, can also be charged. Each person is judged on the evidence against them.

That is why paying someone to appear for you is risky. It can end a career before it starts.

What happens next?

The CBI will question the arrested people and check exam records. It may check photos, biometric data and CCTV.

It can then file a chargesheet (the police final report) in court. The court will frame charges if it finds enough material. A trial follows.

If you want to know more about criminal cases, see our criminal law page.

What are the rights of the accused and of honest candidates?

The accused are presumed innocent. They can ask for bail and have a lawyer of their choice. They must be produced before a magistrate within 24 hours of arrest.

Honest candidates also lose when seats go to impersonators. If a result is affected, a candidate may write to the exam body, or ask a court to examine the process.