Mumbai: A love affair has emerged as a key angle in the Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC) Drug Inspector examination paper leak case, in which six people, including three MPSC officials, have been arrested by the Mumbai Crime Branch.
The arrested accused have been identified as Vishweshwar Dattatray Nakate (35) – Assistant Section Officer, MPSC, Abhijit Ganpatrao Lendwe (38) – Under Secretary, MPSC, Gopal Bhatu/Bhatt Marathe (37) – Assistant Section Officer, MPSC, Pravin Dilip Patil (40) – Director, Kautilya Academy, Nandurbar, Amrit Namdev Patil (55) and Lokesh alias Gaurav Rajendra Patil (24). According to police, Amrit Patil is Rutuja Patil's father.
The Drug Inspector, Group-B examination under the Food and Drug Administration cadre was conducted by the MPSC on March 22. The results were declared in July, but the examination was subsequently cancelled after the question paper leak came to light.
According to Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime Branch) Rajtilak Roshan, the investigation revealed that questions prepared by experts for the examination were illegally obtained before the test and used to create a separate question paper, which was subsequently shared with other individuals. This resulted in a breach of confidentiality in the MPSC examination process.
Love affair angle emerges
According to a Crime Branch officer, accused Lokesh alias Gaurav Rajendra Patil was in a relationship with a woman identified as Rutuja Patil. Investigators suspect that Gaurav obtained the examination paper to help Rutuja clear the Drug Inspector examination and allegedly provided it to her and some other candidates. Rutuja subsequently cleared the examination. However, the relationship between Gaurav and Rutuja later ended.
Police suspect that following the breakup, Gaurav, allegedly angered by the turn of events, informed the MPSC about the paper leak. The MPSC subsequently approached the Mumbai Police, following which the investigation was handed over to the Crime Branch.
Rutuja has been served a notice by the Crime Branch in connection with the investigation.
Three MPSC officials arrested
During the investigation conducted under the supervision of DCP Rajtilak Roshan, the Crime Branch arrested six accused on August 26.
An FIR was registered on August 25, 2026, on the complaint of Mangesh Ganpatrao Desai, in-charge Police Inspector attached to the Property Cell of the Mumbai Crime Branch. The FIR was registered at Cuffe Parade Police Station under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including Sections 112, 316(4), 316(5), 318(4), 238(b), 317(2), 303(2), 61(2) and 3(5), along with relevant provisions of the Maharashtra Prevention of Malpractices at University, Board and Other Specified Examinations Act, 2024, and the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.
Police said the investigation established that confidential examination material prepared by experts was illegally accessed before the examination and circulated to other persons, compromising the integrity and secrecy of the MPSC examination process.
The six accused were arrested on August 26 and produced before the Sessions Court. The court remanded all six accused to Crime Branch custody until September 2. The Crime Branch is now investigating the entire chain through which the confidential question material was accessed, prepared into another question set and circulated. Assistant Commissioner of Police Sadanand Rane, D-Central Division, Mumbai Crime Branch, is conducting further investigation into the case.
Details mentioned in FIR
The investigation into the alleged leak of the Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC) Drug Inspector examination paper has revealed a chain of events involving MPSC officials, an academy director and candidates. According to the complaint filed by Mangesh Ganpatrao Desai, an Inspector attached to the Property Cell of the Mumbai Crime Branch, confidential questions prepared by experts for the examination were allegedly stolen and circulated before the test.
Desai, 45, has been serving as the in-charge Police Inspector of the Property Cell, Mumbai Crime Branch, since 2024. On July 27, 2026, his office received a complaint submitted by MPSC Under Secretary R.P. Otari regarding allegations of a question paper leak in the Drug Inspector examination. Desai was appointed as the inquiry officer.
Alleged chain of paper circulation
The MPSC had issued an advertisement on July 29, 2025, for recruitment to 154 posts of Drug Inspector, Group-B, under the Food and Drug Administration department. The screening examination was conducted on March 22, 2026, from 11 am to noon at six examination centres across Maharashtra. The list of candidates eligible for interviews was published on June 12. Interviews were subsequently conducted between July 1 and July 22, following which the Commission released a provisional merit list around 6 pm on July 22.
However, the MPSC later received allegations that a probable question paper had reached certain candidates before the examination and that some candidates had benefited from it. During the inquiry, police examined the available documents, examination records, WhatsApp chats, digital evidence and statements of the persons concerned.
The investigation allegedly revealed that MPSC Assistant Section Officer Vishweshwar Dattatray Nakate, who was working as the coordinating officer for the Drug Inspector screening examination, had allegedly stolen 294 questions prepared by experts for the examination and compiled them into a separate question set.
According to the complaint, Nakate allegedly handed over the question set to MPSC Under Secretary Abhijit Lendwe in the parking area of the Commission's office before the examination. Lendwe allegedly subsequently handed the question set to MPSC Assistant Section Officer Gopal Marathe, who allegedly passed it on to Pravin Patil, director of Kautilya Academy, in the premises of the Commission's office before the examination.
The investigation further revealed that Pravin Patil allegedly provided a photocopy of the question set to Amrit Patil at his flat at Pathardi Phata in Nashik. The exchange was allegedly facilitated through their acquaintance Mayur Thakare.
Amrit Patil's daughter Rutuja Patil, who allegedly received the question set, subsequently sent it to Lokesh alias Gaurav Patil through WhatsApp.
Police also examined WhatsApp conversations between Gaurav Patil and Rutuja Patil, along with photocopies of the question set and other documents submitted to the MPSC.
According to the inquiry, Rutuja Patil was placed seventh in the provisional merit list for the Drug Inspector examination. The investigation also allegedly found that Abhijit Lendwe and Gopal Marathe received a financial benefit of Rs 5 lakh in connection with the alleged illegal circulation of the examination material.
Investigation continues
According to the complaint, the evidence collected during the inquiry indicated that between July 29, 2025, and July 27, 2026, Nakate, Lendwe and Marathe allegedly acted in collusion with Pravin Patil and others to illegally obtain and circulate questions prepared by MPSC experts.
The complaint alleges that the accused misused their official positions, breached the confidentiality of the examination process, interfered with the fairness of the recruitment examination and facilitated the unauthorised exchange of confidential examination material for financial gain.
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The investigation also alleges that the accused committed criminal breach of trust and either directly or indirectly assisted in the alleged malpractice.
Following the inquiry, Police Inspector Mangesh Desai filed a formal complaint on August 25, 2026. An FIR was registered at Colaba Police Station under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, including Sections 112, 316(4), 316(5), 318(4), 238(b), 317(2), 303(2), 61(2) and 3(5).
The accused have also been booked under relevant provisions of the Maharashtra Competitive Examination (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024, and the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, as amended in 2018. The Mumbai Crime Branch is continuing its investigation into the alleged paper leak and the financial and communication links between the accused.
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