By Aditi Mishra
The Central Bureau of Investigation has filed a chargesheet against Sheshrao Bajrang Suryawanshi, a tea stall owner in Pune, in charge of selling NEET-UG papers to students instead of tea before the examination. Sheshrao Bajrang Suryawanshi, also known as Raj Suryawanshi, is the 14th person who has been charged in the NEET-UG Paper leak case.
According to reports, two students were talking outside their coaching centers when Suryawanshi approached them at his tea stall. He claims that he has a doctor in his contact who could help them with the question paper in exchange for money, which was 4.5 Lakh.
On April 28, he allegedly took students to the doctor’s residence in Panchak Village in Nashik, where eight other students were already present. The CBI states that the group received the question paper and spent the following three to four days studying it.
The students were asked to return the question paper before leaving, but one student reportedly scanned the paper on his mobile phone. The students finally left the house on May 2.
The investigators further dug into the case and found out that Shubham Khairnar, who is a career counsellor, reportedly helped arrange accommodation for the students through Nagesgh Nanarao Dhande, who runs an educational consultancy in Nanded.
Shubham Khairnar was arrested in May for being involved in the NEET-UG paper leak.
The CBI officials also found a PDF containing more than 500 files of Biology and Chemistry questions, which were sent to Dhande for printing, and reportedly eight sets were prepared at a photocopy shop.
Now, investigators are looking into how the questions were obtained and circulated among students before the examination.
The tea stall owner Suryawanshi reportedly asked one student to pay 3 Lakh after the examination, after the initial offer of 4.5 Lakh. According to reports, the student's mother arranged a loan by pledging 35.8 gm of gold jewellery and handed the money to Suryawanshi at his stall. Another student was also asked to pay the money, but he did not make the payment.
The reports do not establish that all students paid the money for the questions.
NEET-UG is an examination used as a gateway for admissions to undergraduate medical courses in India. Students compete for limited seats after years and months of preparation.
If medical aspirants receive question sets before the examination it would be unjust to those candidates who do not have access to those materials and have been preparing fairly.
The incident therefore raises concerns about fairness and transparency in medical admissions.
However, the existing reports do not prove that any candidate secured an MBBS seat because of the alleged leak.
Along with Suryawanshi, 14 other people have now been charged in the case. During the investigations, investigators have checked mobile phones and digital files to find how questions circulated and papers got leaked.
No NTA official had been named as an accused at the time of publication.
The allegations against Suryawanshi have not yet been proven in court. A chargesheet notes the investigating agency’s allegations, but it does not prove Suryawanshi guilty.
(Rh/AM)