2016 Exam, 2026 ED Raid, VPDO Case Reach Harish Rawat Former PA

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has conducted searches at several locations in Dehradun in connection with alleged irregularities in the Uttarakhand Subordinate Service Selection Commission (UKSSSC) Gram Panchayat Vikas Adhikari (VPDO) Examination held in 2016. The searches, conducted on Friday, September 11, 2026, included the premises of a former Officer on Special Duty (OSD) to then Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Singh Rawat, according to the agency. The ED said its operation targeted individuals and entities allegedly connected to the examination process and the suspected conspiracy surrounding it. Searches were carried out at the residential premises of the then Chairman and Secretary of the UKSSSC, the then Exam Controller, the owner of a private computer agency involved in OMR processing, as well as alleged middlemen associated with the case. The 2016 VPDO examination has been under scrutiny over allegations of irregularities in the recruitment process. The latest ED action brings the decade-old examination controversy back into focus and indicates that the financial-investigation angle remains under examination. The involvement of multiple individuals connected with the examination administration and OMR processing process could provide investigators with a wider picture of how the alleged irregularities were carried out and whether financial transactions were involved. However, an ED search is part of an on going investigation and does not by itself establish criminal liability or prove the allegations against any individual. Further findings from the investigation and subsequent legal proceeding will determine the extent of responsibility, if any. For now, the 2016 VPDO examination continues to cast a long shadow over Uttarakhand recruitment system, with the latest searches adding another chapter to a case that has remained in the spotlight year after the examination was conducted.