Around 2,000 male students fraudulently registered as female candidates to take semester exams at three private colleges affiliated with Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar University in Agra.

The scam was detected during routine checks of student enrollment records and exam arrangements at Major Angad Singh Mahavidyalaya, SBD College of Science and Education in Mainpuri, and Gulkandi Lalaram Mahavidyalaya in Mathura. These institutions had been designated as 'self-centres,' where colleges with a higher number of female students are allowed to conduct exams with their staff as invigilators.

Major discrepancies in student numbers across the three shifts raised red flags. A review of CCTV footage provided damning evidence, showing rooms full of male students sitting for exams, often outnumbering female students. In some cases, entire classrooms were filled exclusively with male candidates.

The scam exploited a loophole in university records, which include students’ photographs and fathers’ names but do not specify gender. University examination controller Om Parkash explained that the forms for these exams were submitted just before the exams began on November 21. When records from the examination agency were checked, most candidates were falsely marked as female, despite visual evidence proving otherwise.

Authorities believe administrators at the implicated colleges orchestrated the scam to facilitate mass cheating and improve their institutions’ overall pass percentages. By registering male students as female candidates, the colleges gained access to self-centered privileges, allowing them to control the exam environment and reduce the chances of external scrutiny.

The university has taken immediate action by canceling all exams at the three centers and launching a full-scale investigation. “We have launched an investigation and will take appropriate action based on the findings,” said university officials. They are now reviewing records from other colleges to check for similar irregularities.