In a significant development, Thane Police on Tuesday arrested the wife of Bijendra Kumar Gupta from Patna in connection with the Maharashtra TET paper leak case. The Maharashtra Police have so far arrested three people in the TET paper leak case and recovered four sets of question papers during a trap operation in the Kongaon area of Thane district. During the interrogation, the three accused allegedly identified Bihar-based Bijendra Gupta as the mastermind behind the operation.
Bijendra Gupta, a resident of Bihar, is not a stranger to allegations surrounding examination paper leaks. Prior to this case, he was allegedly linked to multiple such cases and has evaded arrest on several occasions.
Under fire over the Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) question paper leak, the Maharashtra government on Monday told the assembly it is examining the possibility of invoking the stringent anti-organised crime law MCOCA against the accused in the case.
School Education Minister Dada Bhuse, who is facing calls from the Opposition for resignation in the wake of the TET paper leak in Maharashtra last week, made a statement to this effect in the legislative assembly which is having its monsoon session in Mumbai.
He also announced the government will set up a committee headed by the Chief Secretary to work out modalities of conducting TET and other state-level examinations through online mode.
Making a statement in the lower house on the TET paper leak, Bhuse said three accused have been arrested so far and they are in police custody, while a Special Investigation Team (SIT) is probing the case.
"If anyone is found guilty in the June 28 TET paper leak case, action will be taken against all of them. The government is examining whether the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) can be invoked against the accused," the minister asserted.
Under MCOCA, invoked against an individual linked to an organised crime syndicate, it is significantly harder to secure bail, while police get extended time to file a chargesheet.
Bhuse informed the House that police laid a trap and apprehended the accused who were attempting to sell the TET question paper. A set of question paper for the June 28 examination was recovered from their possession a day before.
He said a case was registered at the Kolgaon Police Station in Ahilyanagar district on June 27 under Sections 6 and 8 of the Maharashtra Prevention of Malpractices at University, Board and Other Specified Examinations Act, 1982, for allegedly obtaining the TET question paper illegally, collecting large sums of money from candidates and possessing the paper for distribution.
As part of the probe, two police teams have been sent to Bihar besides one each to Haryana and Delhi to track down other accused involved in the racket, the minister informed the House.
To prevent recurrence of such incidents, Bhuse said the government will constitute a committee under the chairmanship of the Chief Secretary to draw a plan to conduct TET and examinations through online mode (computer based).
The TET 2026 in Maharashtra was postponed on Saturday, a day before it was to be held, after police in Thane district found that a part of its question paper had been leaked and arrested three people.
