Pune: A staffer of the Pune-based National Centre for Radio Astrophysics (NCRA) has been booked under the Official Secrets Act for allegedly leaking the question paper of the 'Work Assistant' recruitment examination held in May 2025, a police official said on Monday. The accused, Vivek Baban Hadawale, a resident of NCRA Colony in Pune, was booked under Section 5 of the Official Secrets Act and Sections 316(2) and 316(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

Source: Careers360 News

As per the FIR registered at Chaturshringi police station, the written examination for Work Assistant posts was conducted on May 24, 2025, at the NCRA centre on the Savitribai Phule Pune University campus. The complaint was filed by Vaibhav Pandurang Sherkar (35), a vigilance officer with Mumbai's Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) — NCRA is a centre of TIFR.

Source: IANS via The Freedom Press

According to the complaint, the vigilance department received a tip-off about the alleged leak in June 2026. Sherkar met the informant on July 31, 2026, who claimed the question paper had been received on WhatsApp from Hadawale's mobile phone at around 7:15 am on May 23, 2025 — a day before the examination. The informant handed over printed copies of the paper and screenshots of the WhatsApp messages.

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The vigilance department compared the paper provided by the informant with the original question paper and found the two to be identical, the complaint states. Based on the complaint, an offence was registered against Hadawale for allegedly disclosing confidential examination material. Police said further investigation is underway; the allegations have not been proved and no conviction has been recorded.

Source: IANS via The Freedom Press

What is solid

  • An FIR has been registered at Chaturshringi police station against NCRA staffer Vivek Baban Hadawale
  • Sections invoked, as per police: Official Secrets Act Section 5 and BNS Sections 316(2) and 316(5)
  • The exam in question was the Work Assistant recruitment test held on May 24, 2025

What is only claimed

  • Whether the question paper was in fact leaked by the accused on WhatsApp — an allegation in the FIR that police are still investigating
  • Whether any other person was involved in the alleged leak — not yet established