CBI Arrests Four AIIMS Patna Students in NEET-UG Paper Leak Case, Remanded to Custody
Patna, 18th July 2024: On Thursday, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) apprehended four MBBS students from AIIMS Patna in connection with the ongoing NEET-UG paper leak case. Subsequently, all the accused were remanded to four days of CBI custody. According to officials, the arrested individuals include three third-year MBBS students—Chandan Singh, Rahul Anant, Kumar Shanu—and one second-year student named Karan Jain, following extensive questioning by the investigative agency.
The students were taken from their hostel accommodations on Wednesday, accompanied by senior faculty members of AIIMS who had been informed beforehand about the necessity of their presence for the investigation. Their hostel rooms have been sealed by the agency.
G K Paul, Director of AIIMS Patna, confirmed the identities of the students and stated that a senior officer had provided photographs and contact details of those required for the probe. The CBI team conducted the apprehension in the presence of the dean, hostel warden, and OSD to the Director, Paul added.
This development comes shortly after the CBI’s recent arrest of Pankaj Kumar alias Aditya, a civil engineer from the National Institute of Technology Jamshedpur, for allegedly stealing the NEET-UG paper from the NTA trunk in Hazaribagh. Kumar, a resident of Bokaro, was apprehended in Patna. Raju Singh, who allegedly assisted Kumar in the theft, was also arrested from Hazaribagh.
The CBI has filed six FIRs related to the NEET-UG irregularities—about paper leaks in Bihar and cases of impersonation and cheating in Gujarat, Rajasthan, and Maharashtra. Additionally, the agency initiated its own FIR based on a referral from the Union Education Ministry for a comprehensive investigation into alleged irregularities in NEET-UG 2024.
NEET-UG is conducted by the NTA for admissions to MBBS, BDS, AYUSH, and other related courses in both government and private institutions. This year, the examination was conducted on May 5 across 4,750 centres in 571 cities, including 14 abroad, with over 23 lakh candidates appearing for the test.
