The Mastermind Behind NEET Paper Leaks with Secret Political Aspirations — Unveiling Sanjeev Mukhiya

 

When investigators from Bihar's Economic Offences Unit gave the NEET-UG paper leak case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), they identified one main suspect: Sanjeev Kumar ‘Mukhiya’, who they believe was the key figure behind the whole operation.

Mukhiya, 51, is the leader of the so-called ‘Solver Gang,’ an interstate network that allegedly sold solved question papers of competitive exams to those who could pay. He is believed to have been involved in at least five major paper leak cases, including the Bihar teachers’ recruitment exam, for which his son, Dr. Shiv alias Bitu, was arrested earlier this year.

Mukhiya, who lives in Nalanda, is currently on the run but has filed for anticipatory bail in a local court.

"The case has not been heard yet.

Mukhiya got his name because his wife was the former village head of Nalanda’s Bhutahakhar panchayat from 2016 to 2021. He has allegedly been involved in paper leak rackets for over twenty years, starting as an aide to Ranjeet Don, who was involved in several exam rackets in the 90s and early 2000s, and then working on his own.

Police sources say Mukhiya has been a technical assistant at Udyan Vidyalaya in Nalanda’s Noorsarai for over 10 years and has been named in at least four paper leak rackets both inside and outside Bihar.

He was arrested twice before — once for a block-level examination in Bihar a decade ago and again in 2016 for a suspected paper leak in Uttarakhand’s constable recruitment exam.

Mukhiya’s son, Shiv, a doctor, was arrested this year for alleged irregularities in Bihar’s Teacher Recruitment Exam-III. Although Mukhiya was also accused in this case, he was not arrested.

According to investigators, Mukhiya’s close aide Baldev Kumar received a PDF of the solved question paper on the morning of May 5, the day of the exam. This solved answer key was allegedly given to candidates to memorize.

Baldev is one of the five alleged 'solver gang' members arrested in the case from Deoghar, Jharkhand.

Political Links: 

Despite the cases against him, Mukhiya also had political ambitions, if not for himself, then through others.

Just before the 2020 Assembly polls, Mukhiya’s wife, Mamata Devi, left Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s party, Janata Dal (United), and unsuccessfully ran for election in Nalanda’s Harnaut as a candidate of the Lok Janshakti Party. She lost to JD(U)’s Hari Narayan Singh.

On Monday, the opposition party Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) released photos of Mamata Devi with leaders of the JD(U) and other National Democratic Alliance parties. Neither the JD(U) nor Chirag Paswan’s Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) has commented on this.

A JD(U) leader admitted anonymously that the connection was “embarrassing” but mentioned that “there are many political constraints in politics and public life.” An LJP (R) leader agreed with this statement.

However, RJD national spokesperson Manoj K. Jha insisted that the party released the photos to highlight the seriousness of the issue. He said, “The scam, which seems to involve many states and raises questions about the NTA, needs to be thoroughly investigated.

Related Videos:

Son in Jail, Wife in Politics: Who is NEET-UG Paper Leak 'Mastermind' Sanjeev Mukhiya?

Also Read:

NEET-UG ‘Paper Leak’: Headmaster of Zilla Parishad School Arrested, Teacher Detained in Latur

A 34-year-old headmaster of a Zilla Parishad school was arrested in connection with the alleged NEET-UG paper leak, Latur police said on Monday.

Police have also detained a 40-year-old teacher from Solapur, Sanjay Jadhav, who also runs a private coaching class.

The headmaster, Jalil Khan Umar Khan Pathan, was arrested early Monday, and his accomplice, Sanjay Jadhav, was detained later in the day.

Superintendent of Police Somay Munde (Latur) confirmed the news, saying, “Questioning of the two accused is still underway as we are trying to establish their roles in the crime and how much money they have earned through the racket.

Related Link:

https://indianexpress.com/article/india/at-school-under-neet-leak-scanner-digital-lock-on-box-with-question-papers-did-not-open-officials-had-to-use-a-cutter-9412985/