NEET-UG: Doc among 2 arrested for planting proxies for candidates
Patna: Two people, including a doctor posted at Begusarai jail, were arrested in Samastipur district on Sunday for allegedly orchestrating a racket that placed impostors in the
NEET-UG 2025
on behalf of original candidates. The arrests were made on the day of the examination, exposing a cheating operation that involved tampering with admit cards and charging candidates up to Rs 5 lakh to secure a proxy.
Police said the accused replaced genuine candidates with academically stronger proxies by editing admit cards, allowing them to gain access to exam centres. The second arrested person is a resident of Darbhanga.
Town additional superintendent of police (ASP) Sanjay Pandey said, "We received an input from Patna, which led to the search for the gang. Near the exam centre at Mohanpur bridge, two people were found sitting on Sunday evening. Upon suspicion, they were questioned and their cellphones were checked, revealing several students' admit cards. Both were arrested and identified as Dr Ranjit Kumar, stationed at Begusarai jail, and Rambabu Malik, a resident of Laheriasarai in Darbhanga."
During interrogation, Dr Ranjit confessed that they had manipulated admit cards to insert scholars into the exam in place of weaker candidates. "They admitted to charging between Rs 2.5 lakh and Rs 5 lakh per candidate. We suspect two to three scholars were placed at the Mohanpur bridge centre alone," said ASP Pandey.
He added, "We are now verifying which exam centres in Samastipur were affected. The cellphone recovered from the doctor contained several admit cards, which we are matching with those who sat the exam. A special police team has been formed to pursue further leads."
Meanwhile,
Patna police
launched a separate operation on the night of May 3, raiding hideouts linked to exam mafias in the city. The raids targeted exam mafia Mithilesh Kumar, who evaded arrest, but three suspects were detained for questioning. Their call records are under examination, though police have declined to release further details at this stage.
The NEET-UG 2025 examination, conducted by the National Testing Agency on May 4, saw over 22 lakh candidates appear across the country in hopes of entering medical, dental and AYUSH programmes. The revelations have heightened concerns about the growing influence of organised cheating in competitive exams.
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