Maharashtra TET paper leak: Employees hid question papers in shoes, paid Rs 8,000 each

File photo: Thane Police arrest three in connection with TET paper leak case

NEW DELHI: The Maharashtra Teacher Eligibility Test paper allegedly walked out of an Agra printing press hidden inside shoe insoles, with two employees paid Rs 8,000 each to smuggle out the confidential examination material, according to a chargesheet filed by Thane City police.The chargesheet, filed before a Bhiwandi court on Friday, names 18 accused, including alleged mastermind Bijendra Gupta, and lays out how investigators traced the leak from the printing press to those allegedly trying to sell the papers in Maharashtra. Sixteen accused have been arrested, while two others, Ashok Sav and Prakash Misal, remain absconding, police said.

How the papers allegedly got out

According to the chargesheet, the leak was traced to Mahim Patran Pvt Ltd, an Agra-based printing press tasked with producing the confidential TET examination material.Between June 15 and 17, two employees and a former staffer allegedly concealed folded question papers inside their shoe insoles while leaving the premises. Security guards frisked their clothes but allegedly did not check their footwear, allowing the papers to be taken outside, the chargesheet said.The state had prepared four separate sets of question papers for the two TET papers to maintain confidentiality and allow one set to be selected on examination day.

Investigators allege that all four sets were nevertheless taken out of the press.The employees were allegedly paid Rs 8,000 each and promised land plots in Agra in return for stealing the papers, according to the chargesheet.

Leak exposed a day before exam

The racket came to light on June 27, a day before the TET was scheduled to be held. Deputy commissioner of Police Pavan Bansod received information that three men were allegedly trying to sell question papers to a Bhiwandi resident.Police then laid a trap using decoy personnel in Kongaon and detained the suspects, recovering four sets of question papers. Officials of the Maharashtra state council of examination later verified that the seized material matched the actual TET paper.

The examination, scheduled for June 28, was subsequently postponed.Police have booked the accused under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita relating to cheating, criminal breach of trust and criminal conspiracy, along with Maharashtra laws dealing with examination malpractice.

A special investigation team is probing the case.Investigators have identified Gupta, a former coaching-class teacher, as the alleged mastermind. Police said he had previously been implicated in another examination paper leak in Odisha.The chargesheet cites money trails, technical evidence and the recovery of an original question paper from the Bihar residence of a relative of Gupta as evidence in the alleged supply chain. Police said a supplementary chargesheet would be filed as the investigation continues.