CBI Takes Over NEET-UG Paper Leak Probe from Bihar Police: Key Evidence Collected

PATNA: The CBI on Monday collected all material evidence related to the alleged NEET-UG paper leak case from the Economic Offences Unit (EOU) of the Bihar police, which had been handling the probe until the federal agency took over.
According to sources, a two-member CBI team, comprising a DIG and deputy SP rank officer, reached the state capital from Delhi and went straight to the EOU office.They are likely to stay here for a couple of days.
The CBI sleuths, who discussed the case with EOU officials after formally taking over the probe, also met officials of Shastri Nagar Police station here, where the first case had been lodged on May 5 after the arrest of a number of persons in connection with the paper leak case, sources said.
The EOU arrested a total of 18 people in connection with the case, including prime suspect Sikandar Yadavendu, his associates, a few aspirants and their parents.
"The CBI collected all material evidence related to the case from the EOU. The pieces of evidence included a partially burnt question paper recovered from a house in Patna, mobile phones of those arrested, laptops, post-dated cheques and reference question papers provided by the National Testing Agency (NTA)," a source said.
The NTA conducted the medical entrance test NEET-UG on May 5 across 4,750 centres across the country and around 24 lakh candidates appeared.
The CBI investigators met officials of the Shastri Nagar Police Station since the matter was first investigated by them before it was handed over to the EOU. Officials of that police station had recorded the confessional statements of several accused, sources said.
The central agency sleuths are expected to record the statement of all those arrested in a day or two and may take them to Delhi for detailed interrogation by obtaining transit remand from a court here, sources said.
The CBI is also likely to file FIRs in connection with destruction of evidence, and register disproportionate assets (DA) cases against some of those accused who are public servants, they said.
"A DA case may be registered against arrested accused Sikander Yadvendu, a junior engineer in the Danapur Town Council. He reportedly acquired huge assets that are disproportionate to his known source of income," a source said.
Yadvendu has a history of involvement in criminal activities and had served a jail term, he said.
Meanwhile, the political pot continued to boil in Bihar over the alleged irregularities in conducting the NEET exam.
The opposition RJD on Monday shared several photographs of the accused Amit Anand, Nitish Kumar and family members of Lutan Mukhiya with leaders of the ruling NDA and demanded a thorough probe into the “links” between the two sides.
A few persons associated with the gang of Sanjeev Kumar alias Lutan Mukhiya were arrested in connection with the case.
Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Kumar Sinha last week claimed that the arrested prime suspect in the NEET “paper leak” is linked to officials associated with RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav.