Pradeep GuptaBhiwandi: The probe into the state Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) paper leak has revealed that the papers may have been leaked while being transported from a printing press in Uttar Pradesh to exam centres in Maharashtra, prompting Thane police to launch a multi-state hunt for the alleged mastermind Bjiender Gupta and his associates. Police have begun the process of issuing a lookout notice for Gupta and another accused who is on the run.According to investigators, the Maharashtra State Council of Examination had entrusted printing of TET papers to Mahim Patran Pvt Ltd, an Agra-based company with a corporate office in Delhi that has reportedly been printing papers for the council for nearly 25 years. After printing, the papers were despatched under security to exam centres across Maharashtra.Police said that by analysing QR codes printed on the four leaked papers recovered from the arrested accused, they found three were meant for exam centres in Washim, Jalna and Latur districts. Investigators suspect the papers were leaked somewhere between the Agra printing facility and their destinations in Maharashtra. Papers recovered from the accused were photocopies of the originals.“We are tracing every link in the movement of the papers to identify where the security breach occurred,” an officer said.The probe is currently centred on the alleged mastermind Gupta, a resident of Samastipur, Bihar. According to investigators, Gupta has been accused in several paper leak cases registered in different states over the years. Police believe his interrogation will be crucial in identifying the source of the leak.Police are also searching for Kapil Dahiya, another key suspect who was with the three arrested accused—Rajiv Shah, Akash Kumar and Dhiraj Singh—in Bhiwandi on the day cops caught them with the papers. But before the police raid, he allegedly left for Pune to negotiate the sale of the leaked papers. After allegedly learning his associates had been arrested, Dahiya is believed to have returned to Mumbai and boarded a flight to Delhi.According to police sources, undercover officers posing as prospective buyers contacted the accused and negotiated a deal for four leaked TET papers—Marathi, Hindi, social science and maths. The accused allegedly demanded Rs 1.25 crore. After the officers agreed to pay Rs 25 lakh as advance, the accused allegedly produced the papers, following which the police team caught them.Investigators said Rajiv Shah and Akash Kumar, both residents of Bihar, were allegedly in contact with Gupta and were in possession of papers, while Dhiraj Singh and Dahiya, both from Haryana, were responsible for negotiating deals with prospective buyers.The probe has also brought family members of the accused to Bhiwandi. A family friend of Akash Kumar, Nitesh Singh, who travelled from Patna, claimed Akash had left home telling his parents he was going to appear for an exam. According to the family, Akash is the only son of his parents, holds a BCom degree, and had been preparing for govt exams. His father works as supervisor at a four-wheeler showroom, while his mother has been unwell for some time.Relatives of Dhiraj Singh said he belongs to a family of farmers in Panipat, worked in a private company and after the death of his parents was supporting his younger brother and sister, both of whom were preparing for govt jobs.Dhiraj’s lawyer Satinder Redhu alleged that Gupta, known for allegedly promising govt jobs, had taken money from Dhiraj on the assurance of arranging employment. The family claimed Gupta may have falsely implicated Dhiraj.The third arrested accused, Rajiv Shah, is married and holds a BSc degree in physics, while Dahiya is the son of a retired army serviceman.“The investigation so far indicates Bijender Gupta is the main accused. Once he is arrested, we expect to establish how the papers were leaked, who assisted the accused and whether more people are involved,” DCP Pawan Bansod of Thane police said.
