The Bihar Police on Monday said they busted a “cheating racket” in Lakhisarai during the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test-Undergraduate or NEET-UG re-exam on Sunday by arresting 30 people, including medical students and employees of a biometric company involved in the examination process.
Lakhisarai police superintendent Prerna said they raided exam centres at three schools and arrested all the accused and recovered mobile phones and other documents from them. She added that 30 people, including nine impersonators, a candidate, two helpers, and 18 biometric staff.
Police said one of the arrested impersonators, Mayank Kashyap, a resident of Hajipur and a fourth-year student at Patna Medical College and Hospital, entered the Hasanpur examination centre in connivance with one of the employees of the biometric company, Ankit Kumar.
Kashyap allegedly entered the examination centre posing as a biometric company employee. After Kashyap’s interrogation, the employees of the biometric company were caught, followed by the impersonaters.
Police identified Ravi Shankar, another student of Pavapuri Medical College in Rajgir, and Arpit Raj, from the ANM Medical College and Hospital in Gaya, as the masterminds behind the network. The Central Bureau of Investigation questioned Raj in connection with the 2024 NEET paper leak case.
Shankar and Raj allegedly involved students at medical colleges as “solvers” and to appear for the exam. The investigator said more people linked to the gang and their transactions were expected to surface as the inquiry progresses.
{{/usCountry}}Shankar and Raj allegedly involved students at medical colleges as “solvers” and to appear for the exam. The investigator said more people linked to the gang and their transactions were expected to surface as the inquiry progresses.
{{/usCountry}}Sub-divisional police officer Shivam Kumar cited the preliminary investigation and said each candidate was to be charged ₹10 to 12 lakh for impersonation. He added that an advance of one to two lakh rupees was taken. Kumar said the balance was to be paid after the students cleared the examination.
Police were investigating bank accounts, mobile call details, and digital transactions. They cited interrogations and said the impersonators breached the verification systems at the examination centres in connivance with biometric company personnel and entered the examination centre instead of genuine candidates.
Over two million medical aspirants appeared for the retest across 5,454 centres in India and abroad amid extensive security arrangements. The retest was scheduled after the NEET was cancelled on May 12 as the central agencies found that the question paper was compromised. It was the second time in two years that NEET-UG came under scrutiny.