Patna, October 30, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached five immovable properties valued at Rs 2.01 crore in connection with its investigation into the 2023 Bihar Constable Recruitment examination paper leak, an official said on Friday.
The ED’s Patna Zonal Office attached the properties under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002.
According to the official statement, the investigation was initiated on the basis of an FIR registered by the Economic Offences Unit (EOU), Patna, under Sections 120B, 420, 467 and 468 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), 1860, and Section 66 of the Information Technology Act, 2000. The case concerned Telegram URLs, mobile numbers and bank accounts allegedly involved in leaking the question paper for the Bihar Constable Recruitment Examination, 2023.
The ED said that, according to a charge sheet filed by the EOU, Patna, on August 22, 2024, Kaushik Kumar Kar, owner of Blessings Secured Press Pvt Ltd, allegedly orchestrated a conspiracy to secure the contract for printing the examination question papers through a proxy company, Caltex Multiventures Pvt Ltd.
The Central Selection Board of Constable, Bihar, awarded the contract to Caltex Multiventures despite the company having no prior printing experience or its own printing press. The arrangement allegedly concealed the involvement of Blessings Secured Press, which had previously been blacklisted over its involvement in examination paper leak cases, the ED said.
The question papers for the 2023 constable recruitment examination were transported from Kolkata to Patna and allegedly leaked en route to the examination centres in connivance with other accused persons. The leak led to the cancellation of the examination, causing financial losses to the Bihar government and adversely affecting the careers of aspirants, the agency said.
The ED’s investigation revealed that Kar, the beneficial owner of Blessings Secured Press Pvt Ltd, had incorporated Caltex Multiventures Pvt Ltd and appointed associates as dummy directors to circumvent restrictions arising from the earlier blacklisting of Blessings Secured Press, according to the statement.
The agency alleged that Caltex Multiventures secured the printing contract through cheating, forgery and criminal conspiracy before outsourcing the work to Blessings Secured Press in violation of its agreement with the Central Selection Board of Constable, Bihar.
Caltex Multiventures received an advance payment of Rs 5.9 crore but transferred only a portion of the funds to Blessings Secured Press. Of the amount, Rs 2.01 crore was allegedly diverted through various shell entities and subsequently dissipated, the ED said.
The investigation further revealed that proceeds of crime generated through the alleged criminal activities were layered and concealed through a complex network of Kolkata-based shell companies and entities that lacked genuine business operations.
Funds were allegedly routed through these entities using bogus transactions to conceal their origin and nature before being converted into cash, thereby ending the money trail, the agency added.
As the proceeds of crime could not be traced further, the ED provisionally attached five immovable properties worth Rs 2.01 crore held in the name of NC Print Pvt Ltd. The company is also allegedly controlled and beneficially owned by Kar.
The attachment has been made as an equivalent value of the proceeds of crime identified so far, the ED said.
FOLLOW NOW
