New Delhi: The CBI revealed on Thursday that NEET paper leak case ‘mastermind’ Pankaj Kumar colluded with the principal and vice principal of Oasis School in Hazaribagh to access the question paper hours before the exam on May 5. The paper was then solved and distributed to candidates who had hired his services, as reported by news agency PTI.

According to a CBI statement on the NEET paper leak probe, Kumar, identified as one of the masterminds, conspired with Oasis School Principal Ehsanul Haque, who also served as the NTA City Coordinator, and Vice Principal Imtiaz Alam, the Centre Superintendent. All three have been arrested.

The CBI identified the center using half-burnt papers recovered from a hostel in Patna.

“The trunks containing the NEET UG 2024 question papers arrived at the school and were placed in the control room on the morning of May 5, 2024. Shortly after their arrival, the principal and vice principal illegally allowed access to the trunks for Kumar. The sophisticated tools used to open the trunks and access the question papers have been seized,” said a CBI spokesperson.

The paper was solved in Hazaribagh on the morning of the exam by MBBS students from AIIMS Patna, RIMS Ranchi, and a medical college in Bharatpur. The CBI has arrested seven of these solvers. “The solved paper was shared with select students who paid for the service. All solvers, identified as MBBS students from reputed colleges, have been arrested. They were brought to Hazaribagh as part of the conspiracy,” the spokesperson added.

Other gang members who worked with Kumar have been identified and some arrested.

“This group was aided by individuals who arranged accommodation for candidates, and others who helped mobilize and transport them. The candidates who received the solved paper are being traced, and necessary action is being taken,” the CBI said.

So far, 36 people have been arrested in connection with the case.

In a major setback to unsuccessful NEET-UG 2024 aspirants, the Supreme Court dismissed pleas for cancellation and re-test of the exam, stating there was no evidence of a “systemic breach” compromising its integrity. The court acknowledged that the leak did occur in Hazaribagh and Patna, with the CBI’s report indicating that “155 students from the centers in Hazaribagh and Patna benefited from the fraud.”

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