5 arrested in connection for NEET exam paper leak
Five persons were arrested by Nainital police on Sunday in connection with the alleged leak of the exam paper of the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) for admission into medical colleges across the country. Of the five, three persons were arrested early on Sunday morning at a resort near the Corbett National Park and two later in the afternoon in Haldwani.
The three who were arrested from the resort, had reportedly sold question papers of the prestigious and highly competitive exam, whose phase II paper was held on Sunday, to as many as 44 aspirants. Although the papers seized turned out to be fake and different from the ones that eventually were answered by examinees across the country, the fraudsters managed to dupe aspirants and their parents of amounts ranging from Rs 10 to 50 lakh.
In an operation carried out at 3.30 in the morning at the resort, Nainital police apprehended the culprits as they were ‘preparing’ the aspirants for the entrance examination with a question paper they were terming as real. Over 40 aspirants and their guardians were present at the dining hall of the resort when the police team raided it. Rupees 90,000 in cash and 20 blank cheques estimated to be worth a few lakhs, were recovered from the culprits, of which one is believed to hail from Delhi and two from Bihar. A case has been registered against them under various sections including section 420 of the Indian Penal Code and section 72 of the IT Act among others.
