Navy job racket busted

The arrested trio in Jalpaiguri. (Biplab Basak)

TT, Jalpaiguri: Three Bihar youths have been arrested in Jalpaiguri for allegedly planning to conduct "an examination" to recruit people to the "Indian Navy" and hand them fake appointed letters after taking "Rs 2-3 lakh" from each of them.

Police said Divyanshu Mishra, Amaresh Yadav and Pramod Kumar - all residents of Darbhanga district - had arrived in Jalpaiguri a few days ago and were to conduct the test at a local school on Sunday.

The police sniffed a conspiracy when the trio informed the Kotwali police station about the test and sought security for the exercise.

"On Sunday, they were to conduct an examination at a local school for recruiting youths to lower posts in the Indian Navy. They had informed us about the test and sought security for the so-called exam," said Biswashroy Sarkar, the inspector in charge of Kotwali police station.

Sources said the police became all the more suspicious after scanning the application, which was made in the name of "Institute of Maritime Academy Private Limited".

"It was surprising that a placement agency would carry the tag of private limited. Also, exams for recruitment to the Indian Navy are conducted by the defence forces," said an officer.

The police learnt that the company was floated in July this year and its address mentioned Dwarka in Delhi.

A police team went to the Jalpaiguri hotel where the trio had put up and detained them for questioning on Saturday evening. "None of them could reply to us satisfactorily. We brought them to the police station," an officer said.

Sources said the trio had admitted that they planned to dupe the candidates for Rs 2-3 lakh each. They were arrested on Saturday night.

"They planned to call the examinees to Delhi and ask for Rs 2-3 lakh from each for the appointment letters. The trio would have fled then," said another officer.

At the hotel, the police also found two women, who have apparently said that they had been asked by the trio to work as "receptionists" at the test centre on Sunday.

Around 80 candidates - all from Assam - turned up at the Purbanchal High School in Jalpaiguri for the test but found the gates locked.

"We had seen ads in newspapers in our area. I felt interested at the prospect of working for the navy and found some local shops selling forms for the exam. I had to attach a draft of Rs 300 with the filled form. A few days later, I received an admit card, where the details of the exam and the test centre were mentioned," said Kavita Kumari, a resident of Paltanbazaar in Guwahati.

A teacher of the school where the test was to be held said: "They had said they would pay us on Sunday for using the school as a test centre. We never imagined that they had such plans."