Pune: The prime accused in the Maharashtra Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) exam paper leak case, Bijendra Kumar Gupta, was arrested by the Maharashtra Police on Saturday morning from Bihar.
He had been on the run for months on the run, officials said, as reported by Republic TV.
Gupta will be escorted to Pune Airport and sent to Bhiwandi from there for further interrogation.
According to officials, Gupta, implicated in several exam paper leak scams nationwide, had successfully dodged capture despite persistent raids conducted by Maharashtra Police across multiple regions in Bihar.
The operation also resulted in the arrest of a second individual alongside Gupta.
A number of people have been arrested for their alleged involvement in the TET paper leak case. They include Gupta’s wife Suman Gupta. She allegedly played a role in facilitating the operations of the network, investigators said and the probe into her alleged involvement is continuing.
Gupta, however, eluded capture, triggering a widespread interstate manhunt.
The Maharashtra Police had previously apprehended three additional suspects from Bihar and Punjab regarding the TET question paper leak.
Kapil Dahiya, Mithun Singh, and Sonu Singh allegedly played various parts in the network responsible for obtaining and distributing the test papers prior to the examination, investigators believe.
Sonu was allegedly connected to printing facilities used for the leaked exam papers and the officials are looking into his reported ties to Gupta, a fellow Samastipur native whom he has allegedly known for many years.
Gupta was allegedly instrumental in several exam paper leak scams nationwide, cementing his status as a primary target in the Maharashtra TET probe, investigators have said.
Authorities are simultaneously investigating his potential connections to other organized paper leak syndicates operating across the country.
Concerns over recruitment arose after allegations were made that TET exam papers were illicitly acquired and distributed prior to the test. Investigators suspect the network spanned multiple states and are probing financial flows, call records, and the involvement of middlemen tied to the suspects.
The Maharashtra State Council of Examination (MSCE) deferred the Maharashtra TET test, slated to be held on June 28, after the allegations surfaced.
