Bhiwandi: The Maharashtra Teacher Eligibility Test (TET)-2026 paper leak investigation has entered a crucial new phase with the arrest of the first woman accused in the case, even as the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Thane Police expands its crackdown across Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Investigators on Monday arrested Suman Kumari, wife of absconding accused Bijendra Kumar Gupta, from Patna, Bihar, in what officials describe as another significant breakthrough in an investigation that has rapidly evolved into one of Maharashtra's biggest examination fraud probes in recent years.
Police believe the case extends far beyond a single examination leak and may involve a sophisticated interstate syndicate engaged in organised examination fraud. The SIT is now pursuing multiple leads, including financial transactions, digital evidence, interstate movement of suspects and the possible compromise of the examination paper printing and distribution process.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Pawan Bansode said five SIT teams are simultaneously conducting operations in different states to trace absconding accused and identify others suspected of being part of the alleged network.
The arrest of Suman Kumari marks the first arrest of a woman in the TET paper leak investigation.
According to police, she was apprehended from Patna during a coordinated operation after investigators developed fresh leads while tracking the movements and financial links of her husband, Bijendra Kumar Gupta, a resident of Samastipur in Bihar. Gupta continues to remain absconding and is considered one of the most important suspects in the case.
Investigators suspect Gupta played a key role in the alleged conspiracy. However, police officials have clarified that it would be premature to describe him as the mastermind until he is arrested and questioned.
Investigators said another key absconding accused, Kapil Shrikrishna Dahiya of Haryana, had allegedly travelled to Pune to negotiate the sale of the leaked TET question papers.
After learning that three of his associates had been arrested during the June 27 operation in Bhiwandi, Dahiya allegedly drove to Mumbai and later fled by air using a fake identity.
Police allege that Dahiya and arrested accused Dheeraj Kumar were involved in negotiating the sale of the leaked papers, while Akash Kumar and Rajeev were assigned the task of delivering the question papers to prospective buyers. Four sets of question papers were recovered during the police operation.
So far, three accused have been arrested in the case, while Kapil Shrikrishna Dahiya and Bijendra Kumar Gupta remain absconding.
The SIT is also investigating whether the alleged leak originated during the printing or transportation of the examination papers.
Investigators are examining security protocols followed at a private printing press mahim patram Pvt Ltd in Agra, Uttar Pradesh where Maharashtra examination papers have reportedly been printed for nearly two decades.
According to investigators, sealed consignments were transported from the printing facility to treasury centres in Latur, Washim and Jalna before being distributed for the examination.
Officials are attempting to determine whether the security chain was compromised at any stage between printing, transportation and storage.
Authorities have already verified three of the four recovered sets of question papers as genuine through the Maharashtra State Examination Council, while verification of the fourth set remains in progress.
Investigators consider 44-year-old Bijendra Kumar Gupta, also known as Bijendra Gupta, to be a crucial link in the suspected interstate network.
Police sources said records indicate that examination paper leak cases were registered against him in July and August 2023, including cases in Odisha and other states.
Officials believe the alleged operation may involve multiple layers of operatives working across different states rather than a single isolated group.
The SIT has also found indications that several suspects may have operated under different identities in different states.
Investigators are analysing mobile phone records, travel history, bank transactions and identity documents to establish the movement and actual identities of the accused.
Police are also tracing financial transactions to determine the money trail behind the alleged sale of leaked question papers.
Investigators are separately examining Kapil Dahiya's background and alleged association with the suspected syndicate.
Preliminary information suggests that his father is a retired Army personnel.
Police are attempting to determine when Dahiya allegedly became associated with the examination leak network and whether he has links to similar examination fraud cases registered elsewhere in the country.
Counsel for arrested accused Dheeraj Kumar, advocate Satinder Redhu, said Dheeraj's parents are deceased and that he is responsible for supporting his younger brother and sister.
According to the defence, Dheeraj had allegedly paid money to Bijendra Gupta believing he would help him secure employment. The family maintains they had no knowledge of any alleged examination paper leak racket.
Meanwhile, relatives of arrested accused Akash Kumar, a 28-year-old resident of Patna, who travelled to Bhiwandi following his arrest, claimed they believed he had left home to appear for a competitive examination.
The family said Akash's father works for a private firm while his mother has been suffering from prolonged illness. They acknowledged, however, that Akash and co-accused Rajeev had known each other for several years.
The Thane Police have initiated the legal process for issuing Lookout Circulars (LOCs) and other coercive measures against the absconding accused.
Investigators are also examining whether the suspected group had operational links with other organised examination fraud syndicates active across the country.
Police have recovered Xerox copies of the leaked question papers.
The SIT is now attempting to establish how many copies were produced who received them and whether any had already reached candidates before the scheduled examination.
Officials believe the arrest of the remaining absconding accused could expose the complete structure of the alleged syndicate and identify additional beneficiaries.
The investigation has now evolved into a nationwide probe after the Bhiwandi Police conducted a raid in the Kon Gaon Bhiwandi area on June 27, 24 hours before the scheduled TET examination.
During the operation, police arrested three accused and recovered four sets of alleged TET question papers that investigators say were being negotiated for nearly Rs 1.5 crore.
The recovery prompted the Maharashtra Government to postpone the TET examination across the state.
Investigators are also examining whether the Maharashtra TET paper leak has any connection with the alleged examination fraud network linked to Sanjeev Mukhiya, whose name surfaced during the 2024 NEET paper leak investigation.
Police are examining claims made during a 2024 media sting operation in which Bijendra Gupta allegedly described himself as being associated with a long-running examination paper leak network and referred to Mukhiya as a major operator.
However, police officials stressed that no official link between the Maharashtra TET case and the alleged Mukhiya network has been established so far, and the investigation remains ongoing.
Investigators believe the swift action by the Bhiwandi Police prevented what could have become one of Maharashtra's biggest examination scandals.
Officials said that had the operation failed, thousands of candidates could have appeared for the examination using allegedly leaked question papers, severely undermining the credibility of the state's teacher recruitment process.
With digital evidence, financial records, bank transactions, call data records and interstate links now under detailed scrutiny, investigators expect further arrests in the coming days.
For now, three accused remain in police custody, Suman Kumari has become the first woman arrested in the case, while the search continues for absconding suspects Kapil Shrikrishna Dahiya and Bijendra Kumar Gupta, as the SIT works to unravel what investigators suspect is a highly organised interstate examination paper leak syndicate.
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