Latur Coaching Institute Founder Arrested In NEET-UG Paper Leak Case
A leaked question paper for the medical entrance examination was found on Motegaonkar’s mobile phone during searches conducted on Sunday: Officials
MUMBAI: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested a coaching institute founder from Maharashtra’s Latur in connection with the alleged NEET-UG paper leak case. Prof. Shivaraj Motegaonkar, owner of Renukai Chemistry Classes (RCC), is the 10th person arrested in the case. He runs the institute through nine branches.
Earlier, the CBI had arrested nine persons across five states. According to the agency, its probe has revealed that the alleged paper leak operation began in the last week of April, days before the May 3 examination.
Officials said a leaked question paper for the medical entrance examination was found on Motegaonkar’s mobile phone during searches conducted on Sunday. He was subsequently arrested.
The CBI alleged that Motegaonkar was an active member of an organised gang involved in the leakage and circulation of the NEET-UG paper. According to the agency, he had received the question paper and answers before the examination and allegedly circulated them to several individuals.
“He is close to P.V. Kulkarni, Chemistry Lecturer, who is associated with NTA. Searches conducted at his institute and residence resulted in recovery of a Chemistry question bank which contained exactly the same questions which appeared in the NEET exam held on May 3,” the CBI said in a statement.
The agency had earlier arrested Kulkarni, alleging that he and one Manisha Waghmare conducted special coaching classes for students at his residence in Pune. The CBI claimed that Kulkarni “dictated questions along with options and correct answers. The questions so dictated were handwritten by students in their notebooks and have exactly tallied with the actual question paper”.
Last Saturday, the agency also arrested senior Botany lecturer Manisha Gurunath Mandhare from Pune. Investigators claimed that the “actual source” of the leakage of Chemistry and Biology papers, as well as middlemen involved in mobilising students, had been identified.
The case first surfaced in Rajasthan on May 7, and the CBI formally took over the investigation on May 12.
Over 22 lakh students appeared in the NEET-UG medical entrance exam on May 3, which now stands cancelled. A retest has been ordered for June 21, and admit cards will be released by June 14.
