UP STF arrests two Aces Infra directors in SSC exam-rigging bust; total accused reaches 10
Synopsis
The UP STF's arrest of two Aces Infra directors exposes a systemic rot in how SSC examination centres were selected — a contractor allegedly exploiting unpaid fees to coerce centre operators into enabling cheating, while knowingly re-designating a lab whose owner was already accused in a prior exam fraud. With suspected centres now identified across seven states and 10 arrested, this is one of the most wide-ranging competitive-exam scams to hit India's recruitment infrastructure in recent years.
Key Takeaways
The UP STF arrested two directors of Aces Infra Private Limited — Gagandeep Sharma and Yadavendra Singh , both from Jaipur — in connection with the SSC exam rigging case .
Total accused arrested in the case has reached 10 ; all have been sent to judicial custody.
The racket involved installing a proxy server to hack the exam server and relay answers to candidates in real time; police seized ₹50 lakh in cash in the initial raid on 22 May .
Aces Infra allegedly failed to pay Balaji Digital Zone prescribed fees for 16 SSC examinations conducted since 2025 , while also breaching multiple security regulations.
Aces Infra allegedly designated a lab owned by accused mastermind Pradeep Chauhan as an SSC centre even after he was named in an earlier cheating case in Dehradun .
Suspected compromised centres have been identified across 7 states : UP, MP, Rajasthan, Arunachal Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand , and Delhi .
The Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF) has dismantled a large-scale online examination rigging network linked to the Staff Selection Commission (SSC), arresting two directors of Aces Infra Private Limited — the firm contracted to select examination centres across northern India. The arrests, carried out on 23 September 2026 in a joint operation with the Knowledge Park Police Station and Gautam Buddh Nagar Police, bring the total number of accused arrested in the case to 10.
Who Was Arrested
The two newly arrested accused are both residents of Jaipur. They have been identified as Gagandeep Sharma, a resident of Mahima City under Ramnagari Police Station in Jaipur, and Yadavendra Singh. Both served as directors of Aces Infra Private Limited, which had been engaged by executing agency Equity — appointed by the SSC — to designate examination centres in northern Indian states.
How the Racket Operated
According to the STF, the first major breakthrough in the case came on 22 May, when a team led by Additional Superintendent of Police Navendu Kumar of the STF Field Unit Noida, alongside Sub-Inspector Akshay P.K. Tyagi, arrested seven accused at Balaji Digital Zone in Greater Noida, located within the Knowledge Park Police Station area. Those arrested included alleged mastermind Pradeep Chauhan and hacker Amit Rana.
Investigators say a proxy server was installed at the centre and the examination server was allegedly hacked. Links were then provided to candidates' computers, enabling remote 'solvers' to assist them during the live test. During that raid, police seized ₹50 lakh in cash, proxy servers, and other incriminating material.
The examination targeted was the SSC Constable General Duty in the SEPF and SSF and Rifleman Examination-2026 for Assam Rifles.
Aces Infra's Role and Alleged Violations
Investigators allege that Aces Infra committed multiple violations in its role as a centre-selection contractor. The company allegedly failed to pay Balaji Digital Zone the prescribed fees despite 16 SSC examinations having been conducted at that centre since 2025. This financial leverage, according to the STF, allegedly enabled centre operators to collect money directly from candidates and facilitate cheating.
Notably, the probe revealed that in April 2026, a computer lab named Mahadev Digital Zone in Dehradun — also linked to Pradeep Chauhan — had been caught facilitating cheating via a proxy server. A case was registered at Kotwali Police Station, Dehradun, naming Chauhan as the primary accused. Despite this, Aces Infra allegedly went on to designate Chauhan's Balaji Digital Zone in Greater Noida as an SSC examination centre, without taking cognisance of the earlier case.
Scale of the Scam
The STF said investigators have so far identified dozens of suspected examination centres across at least seven states — Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Arunachal Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, and Delhi — as allegedly part of the wider scam. The STF had been acting on continuous intelligence inputs about gangs manipulating multiple SSC examinations before constituting the dedicated investigation team.
All 10 accused arrested to date have been sent to judicial custody. The investigation is ongoing, with authorities working to identify further individuals within the network.
Point of View
With no apparent due-diligence mechanism to flag an operator already named in an exam fraud. The STF's finding that Aces Infra withheld fees from centres is particularly alarming: it suggests a deliberate leverage model, not negligence. What is missing from public discourse is scrutiny of the SSC's own oversight — if 16 examinations were conducted at a compromised centre since 2025, why did none of the Commission's internal audits catch it? With suspects now spread across seven states, this case demands a systemic audit of every centre designated by Aces Infra, not just prosecution of those already arrested.
NationPress
23 Sept 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the UP STF SSC exam rigging case about?
The case involves a large-scale racket to cheat in online SSC examinations, where proxy servers were used to hack exam servers and relay answers to candidates at designated centres. The UP STF has arrested 10 people so far, including two directors of Aces Infra Private Limited, the firm that selected examination centres for the SSC.
Who are Gagandeep Sharma and Yadavendra Singh?
They are the two directors of Aces Infra Private Limited arrested on 23 September 2026, both residents of Jaipur. Aces Infra was contracted by the SSC's executing agency Equity to select examination centres across northern Indian states, and investigators allege the company played a central role in enabling the cheating network.
How did the exam rigging actually work?
According to the STF, a proxy server was installed at the examination centre and the exam server was allegedly hacked. Links were then provided to candidates' computers, allowing remote 'solvers' to answer questions on their behalf during live tests. The method was used during the SSC Constable General Duty and Rifleman Examination-2026 for Assam Rifles.
How many states are under investigation in connection with this scam?
The STF has identified dozens of suspected examination centres across at least seven states — Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Arunachal Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, and Delhi — as allegedly part of the wider network. The investigation is ongoing.
What violations did Aces Infra allegedly commit?
According to investigators, Aces Infra allegedly failed to pay Balaji Digital Zone the prescribed fees for 16 SSC examinations held since 2025, and violated multiple security regulations for examination centre operators. The STF also found that Aces Infra designated a centre owned by already-accused mastermind Pradeep Chauhan even after he was named in a prior Dehradun cheating case.
