4 held in Rohtak for PMT paper ‘leak’

Tribune News Service

Rohtak, May 4

The Rohtak police claim to have busted a gang involved in allegedly leaking the All-India Pre-Medical Test (AIPMT) paper held on Sunday with the arrest of four persons, including two dental surgeons and an MBBS student.

While a local court remanded the accused in four-day police custody, CBSE Central Controller of Examinations KK Chaudhry said the paper had been conducted smoothly across the country and they had no information about the alleged paper leak.

Rohtak IGP Shrikant Jadhav said an answer key of 90 questions, mobile chips, micro earphones, blue-tooth devices and digital watches had been seized from the possession of those arrested. “The accused had planned to stitch the gadgets to the candidates’ undergarments through which the answer key was to be passed on to them,” he said.

Nine candidates had reportedly agreed to pay Rs 15-20 lakh for the deal. “After receiving a tip-off, we ensured stringent frisking at the entrances of all PMT centres in Rohtak. So, the candidates were not able to take the gadgets inside the examination hall,” Jadhav said. He did not rule out the possibility of the paper having been leaked at centres outside Rohtak.

“Roop Singh Dangi of Madina village in Rohtak is the mastermind of the plan. He is yet to be arrested. The picture will be clear once Dangi is arrested and those in our custody are thoroughly interrogated,” the IGP said, adding initial leads suggested it could be an interstate racket.

Those arrested were dental surgeons Dr Bhupender of Gudhana village and Dr Sanjeet of Rohtak; Ravi of Nimka village near Greater Noida in Uttar Pradesh who is an MBBS student at the Rohtak PGIMS; and Rajesh of Gaddi Kheri village in Rohtak.

The answer key was found in the WhatsApp inbox of a mobile phone seized from the possession of those arrested. Rohtak SP Shashank Anand said they would approach the CBSE authorities to confirm if the seized answer key was genuine. “If it is genuine, we will investigate whether it was leaked from the CBSE office or a PMT centre or during transit,” he said.

Sources said the police received a tip-off that a conspiracy to leak the paper had been hatched. The accused and the candidates had reportedly met at a Panipat hotel recently. They were traced through the location of their mobile phones. A case under relevent sections the IPC and IT Act has been registered.