APPSC exam scam: ED raids 7 premises in Telangana, Andhra Pradesh over ₹1.14 crore irregularities
Synopsis
The Enforcement Directorate has taken the APPSC Group-I exam irregularities case to a new level — moving beyond the state SIT probe to raid seven premises across two states under PMLA, zeroing in on an alleged ₹1.14 crore payment to a private firm for manual evaluation. The case implicates an IPS officer, two private companies, and a resort in Guntur where answer scripts were reportedly stored and evaluated.
Key Takeaways
The Enforcement Directorate raided 7 premises in Hyderabad , Secunderabad , and Guntur district on 4 November 2026 under the PMLA .
The raids relate to an alleged payment of ₹1,14,32,312 to a private party for manual evaluation of APPSC Group-I Main Exam answer scripts.
Targets include IPS officer P.
Seetharamanjaneyulu , Camsign Media Pvt.
Ltd. , TruGrader Services , and individuals associated with both firms.
An AP Police SIT headed by DGP Ravi Shankar Ayyanar had earlier found procedural violations in both digital and manual evaluation stages.
The exam was conducted under the YSRCP government; an investigation was ordered after the TDP-led NDA came to power in 2024 .
The Andhra Pradesh High Court had stayed interviews and ordered fresh manual evaluation after digital evaluation was legally challenged.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday, 4 November 2026 conducted search operations at seven premises across Hyderabad and Secunderabad in Telangana and Guntur district in Andhra Pradesh, in connection with alleged financial irregularities in the evaluation of answer scripts of the Andhra Pradesh Public Service Commission (APPSC) Group-I Main Examination. The searches were carried out under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), with investigators focusing on an alleged payment of ₹1,14,32,312 to a private party for manual evaluation work.
Who Is Under the Scanner
The raids targeted the premises of IPS officer P. Seetharamanjaneyulu, who served as the then Secretary of the APPSC; Camsign Media Pvt. Ltd., the private firm entrusted with manual evaluation, and its Managing Director P. Madhusudhana Rao; and Aavasa Resort Haailand in Chinakakani Village, Guntur district — the location where answer scripts were reportedly stored and evaluated.
Searches were also conducted at TruGrader Services, a division of Stone Media Advisory Services Pvt. Ltd., which had carried out the earlier digital evaluation for the APPSC, along with its Managing Director Akella Peri Srinivasa Rao and an individual named Mahamkali Raghuram, who was reportedly engaged in connection with the evaluation work.
Background: A Long-Running Exam Controversy
The APPSC Group-I examination process has been mired in controversy for years. The exam notification was issued on 31 December 2018; the preliminary examination was held on 26 May 2019; and the Main written examination was conducted in December 2020. Results were declared on 28 April 2021 following a digital evaluation process, with 326 candidates shortlisted for interviews.
The digital evaluation method was subsequently challenged before the Andhra Pradesh High Court on the ground that it was not contemplated in the original exam notification. The High Court issued an interim stay on interviews and later directed the APPSC to undertake a fresh manual evaluation of the answer scripts — the process at the centre of the current ED investigation.
What the SIT Found
A Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Andhra Pradesh Police, headed by DGP (CID) Ravi Shankar Ayyanar and constituted through a government order dated 14 February 2026, submitted a report finding multiple procedural violations in both the digital and manual evaluation stages.
According to the SIT report, the digital evaluation was affected by significant deviations at nearly every stage. The evaluator panel was reportedly neither sourced nor vetted as required under the APPSC Office Manual, and persons outside the approved panel evaluated scripts and received payment for doing so. The SIT reportedly found multiple lapses, including alleged flouting of the APPSC's own rules.
Notably, the APPSC Group-I examination was conducted in 2020 when the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) was in power. An investigation into the alleged irregularities was ordered after the Telugu Desam Party (TDP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) came to power in 2024.
What Happens Next
The ED's PMLA searches signal an escalation from the state police's SIT probe to a federal financial crimes investigation, suggesting authorities are now pursuing potential money laundering angles beyond administrative misconduct. With searches still under way, formal summons, arrests, or asset attachment orders could follow depending on evidence gathered. The case is being closely watched by thousands of APPSC aspirants whose careers remain in limbo pending a valid merit list.
Point of View
The breakdown appears systemic rather than isolated. The political dimension — an investigation ordered by an incoming government targeting processes of its predecessor — deserves scrutiny too; legitimate accountability and partisan score-settling can look identical at the investigation stage, and courts will ultimately have to draw that line. For the thousands of APPSC aspirants still awaiting a final merit list, the prolonged legal and investigative limbo is itself a harm that no probe timeline has yet addressed.
NationPress
4 Nov 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the APPSC Group-I exam case that the ED is investigating?
The case involves alleged irregularities in the evaluation of answer scripts for the Andhra Pradesh Public Service Commission Group-I Main Examination, including an alleged payment of ₹1,14,32,312 to a private firm for manual evaluation work. The ED is investigating potential money laundering under the PMLA, following an earlier SIT probe by the Andhra Pradesh Police.
Which premises did the ED raid on 4 November 2026?
The ED searched seven premises including those of IPS officer P. Seetharamanjaneyulu (then APPSC Secretary), Camsign Media Pvt. Ltd. and its MD P. Madhusudhana Rao, Aavasa Resort Haailand in Chinakakani Village in Guntur district, TruGrader Services (a division of Stone Media Advisory Services Pvt. Ltd.) and its MD Akella Peri Srinivasa Rao, and an individual named Mahamkali Raghuram. Locations spanned Hyderabad, Secunderabad, and Guntur district.
What did the SIT find in its investigation of the APPSC exam?
The SIT, headed by DGP (CID) Ravi Shankar Ayyanar and formed on 14 February 2026, found significant procedural deviations in both the digital and manual evaluation stages. It reportedly found that the evaluator panel was not sourced or vetted as required by the APPSC Office Manual, and that persons outside the approved panel evaluated scripts and were paid for it.
Why was the APPSC digital evaluation challenged in court?
The digital evaluation method was challenged before the Andhra Pradesh High Court on the ground that it was not provided for in the original exam notification. The High Court issued an interim stay on the interview process and subsequently directed the APPSC to conduct a fresh manual evaluation — the manual process that is now at the centre of the ED's PMLA investigation.
What is the political background of the APPSC exam case?
The APPSC Group-I Main Examination was conducted in December 2020 during the YSRCP government's tenure. An investigation into the alleged irregularities was ordered after the TDP-led NDA came to power in Andhra Pradesh in 2024, triggering both the SIT probe and the subsequent ED action.
