Police start zeroing in on students in NEET scam

As reported by The Indian Express in April, Delhi Police had discovered that computer servers were allegedly hacked to help some students cheat in the exam, following which three persons were arrested.

Sources said that weeks after cracking the case and arresting three persons who helped the students cheat — Abhishek Singh, Atul Vats and Hansul — police had identified some “beneficiaries”.

However, they were not able to gather direct evidence against them. Subsequently, the supervisors of the two examination centres were arrested as well.

“After arresting the supervisors and their subordinates, all students who benefited were identified and evidence against them was found. The Investigating Officer, posted with the central range unit of the Delhi Police Crime Branch, sent a request to his seniors in the Delhi Police Headquarters, seeking permission to take legal action against these applicants,” police sources said.

Among the evidence found by investigators are photos of questions sent by the aspirants for outside help. The solved papers then were sent back to the centre.

“Police have collected CCTV footage from both examination centres, and have found that some students were using their cell phones in the last 45 minutes of the exam — minutes after they received solved answers,” police sources claimed, adding that some of these students got admission to prominent medical colleges across the country.

“Students have been asked to join the probe and they will be confronted with all technical evidence, besides disclosures by the arrested persons,” police sources said.

“The Chandigarh examination centre in-charge Ankur Mishra, who has been arrested, hacked the examination server and shared a software with his associates, who also used it to hack the server. The CCTVs at the centres were switched off during the hacking,” police said.