NEET UG Paper Leak: Scam Trail Reaches Kerala; Nashik Press Was Ground Zero

The NEET question paper was reportedly leaked right from the printing press in Nashik. It was then disguised as a 'model paper' and sent to around ten states, including Kerala.

The investigation into the NEET paper leak has now reached Kerala. It's been found that a 'model question paper', created from the original leaked paper, was also circulated in the state. Initial information suggests the entire scam started in Nashik. The CBI has already formed a special team and has begun its investigation.

Usually, cheating gangs would leak papers while they were being transported to exam centres. But this time, the scam was on another level – the paper was leaked directly from the printing press itself.

This year's NEET question paper was printed at a press in Nashik. 

A medical student named Shubham Karniyar managed to get the complete question paper from this press. He then couriered it to a doctor in Haryana. Through this doctor, the paper reached the masterminds of the operation, Manish Yadav and Rakesh Kumar, in Sikar. From there, it was distributed to gangs in places like Jaipur, Delhi, Dehradun, Jammu & Kashmir, Bihar, Kerala, Telangana, and Andhra Pradesh.

To avoid getting caught, the gang cleverly turned the original paper into a 'model question paper'. This 'model paper' was then sold to students who had paid for it.

The paper was sold for anything between ₹25,000 and ₹2 lakh on social media apps like Telegram and WhatsApp. It was a well-planned scam with many people involved in the chain. A medical student from Churu, who is currently studying in Kerala, is also suspected to be a link in this network. Reports suggest that he passed on the 'model paper' to some students in Kerala. CBI sources have indicated that the investigation is now spread across 10 states. The big giveaway was how similar the papers were. A whopping 90 questions in Biology and 35 out of 45 questions in Chemistry from the 'model paper' were exactly the same as in the real NEET paper. Investigators also suspect that the paper was circulated on a Telegram channel called 'PRIVATE MAFIA'.