NEET paper leak: Delhi court denies bail to doctor, calls him ‘active conspirator’

A Delhi court rejected the bail plea of a doctor accused in the NEET paper leak case, calling him an active conspirator in an organised syndicate. The court said the alleged scam undermined students' trust, while extending judicial custody of all 13 accused till August 6

New Delhi: A Delhi court on Friday dismissed the bail plea of a doctor accused in the NEET paper leak case, saying it is prima facie clear from the probe that he was “one of the active conspirators of an organised paper leak gang”.

Slamming the accused persons, the court said that their abhorrent and illegal acts have eroded the trust of the honest students who prepare for the exam with full zeal and honesty, and by burning the midnight oil to compete with their fellow candidates based on their sheer skill and competence.

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Special Judge Ajay Gupta was hearing the bail plea of the accused paediatrician Dr Manoj Bhagwanrao Shirure. In its order, the court said, “It is prima facie clear from the investigation carried out by the CBI and the incriminating material collected by them till date, that the present accused is one of the active conspirators of an organised paper leak gang”

It said that Shirure is part of a larger syndicate involved in illegal activities for monetary gain. “It is prima facie clear that he had not only sourced the candidates for the co-accused persons, but he had also received a substantial amount against the same.” “It is also prima facie clear from the record that he had also made all possible efforts to conceal the amount of Rs 5 lakh received for his aforesaid illegal activities from a co-accused; however, the said amount has been recovered by the CBI,” the court said.

It dismissed the bail plea, considering the totality of facts and circumstances of the case, nature of allegations against the accused, his conduct and observing that as the probe is at a crucial stage, the possibility of the accused influencing the public witnesses cannot be ruled out.

The court observed that the paper leak had impacted millions of NEET aspirants and if the allegations against the accused persons were taken at face value, these would prima facie show that they “sabotaged” the exam to “satisfy their greed” and “to gain illegal wealth”.

It said they also brought disrepute to the nation, besides causing a huge loss running into several crores of rupees to the government exchequer.

“Further, their abhorrent and illegal acts have also eroded the trust of the honest students in the process of this exam, who prepare for the exam with full zeal and honesty and by burning the midnight oil, to compete with their fellow candidates on the basis of their sheer skill and competence,” the court said.

On Friday, the court also extended the judicial custody of all 13 accused till August 6. During the arguments on bail, the CBI had claimed that the Latur-based doctor took Rs 5 lakh from a candidate’s family and allowed the candidate to access the leaked chemistry paper at his hospital before the examination.

The federal agency had also told the court that Shirure had referred two other doctors to the alleged kingpin P V Kulkarni, and the children of these doctors also allegedly benefited from the paper “leak”.

On May 12, the National Testing Agency cancelled the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (Undergraduate), or NEET-UG, held on May 3 for medical admissions amid allegations of paper leak.
A re-exam was then held on June 21.