ED raids seven locations in Hyderabad, Guntur over APPSC Group-1 evaluation probe

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday conducted searches in connection with alleged irregularities in the APPSC Group-1 Mains examination. The searches were carried out across seven locations, including Hyderabad and Secunderabad in Telangana, as well as Guntur district in Andhra Pradesh.

The operations, overseen by the ED’s Hyderabad Zonal Office, began on Wednesday morning under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

Officials stated that there are allegations of irregularities in the manual evaluation process of the APPSC Group-1 Mains answer scripts, during which a payment of Rs. 1,14,32,312 was allegedly made to a private firm.

The searches are primarily focused on the residences and offices of the then-APPSC Secretary, IPS officer Sitaramanjaneyulu; the premises of ‘Camsign Media Pvt. Ltd.’—the firm entrusted with the manual evaluation of the answer scripts—and locations linked to the company’s Managing Director, P. Madhusudana Rao.

Additionally, searches are also underway at ‘Aavasa Resort Haailand’ in Chinakakani village, Guntur district—the site where the answer scripts were stored and the evaluation process was conducted. Additionally, the ED is conducting searches at the residences and offices of entities and individuals including ‘TruGrader Services’—a division of ‘Stone Media Advisory Services Private Limited’ that previously handled digital evaluation for the APPSC—as well as its Managing Director, Akella Peri Srinivasa Rao, and Mahankali Raghuram, who was involved in this evaluation work.

Officials stated that the searches are currently underway and that ED teams are engaged in gathering evidence related to the case.