Maharashtra TET paper leak case: Mastermind, aide held from Bihar; total arrests reach 14

The alleged mastermind behind the Maharashtra Teacher Eligibility Test TET 2026 paper leak was arrested from Bihar along with an associate taking the total number of arrests in the case to 14 a senior police official said on SaturdayThe accused identified as Vijayendrakumar Gupta alias Bijendra Kumar Gupta and his associate Indrajit Singh were arrested on Friday by the Special Investigation Team SIT probing the case Deputy Commissioner of Police Bhiwandi ZoneII Pawan Bansode saidAlleged kingpin tracked for several weeksAccording to police the SIT had been tracking Gupta for several weeks after he emerged as the alleged chief coordinator of an interstate paper leak networkFollowing their arrest in Bihar Gupta and Singh were brought to Pune on Saturday before being taken to Bhiwandi where they are scheduled to be produced before a court to seek police custody for further interrogationThe total number of arrests in the case has now reached 14 Bansode told PTIInvestigators are expected to question the duo to identify other members of the alleged network and trace the broader conspiracy behind the examination paper leakFourteen arrested so farWith the latest arrests the number of accused held in the case has risen to 14Those arrested earlier include Rajiv Shaw Akash Kumar Dheeraj Singh Sonu Singh Mithun Singh Kapil Dahiya Suman Kumari Guptamdashthe wife of Vijayendrakumar Guptamdashand Agrabased private printing press employees Nareshkumar Mahore Sanjaykumar Sharma and Babulal KushwahaPolice suspect the accused were part of an organised network involved in leaking confidential examination papers before the scheduled testPaper leak detected before examinationThe case came to light on June 27 when Bhiwandi police acting on confidential intelligence raided a location and seized copies of unauthorised TET question papersSubsequent verification by officials of the Maharashtra State Council of Examination MSCE confirmed that the seized papers matched the actual question paper prepared for the TET examination scheduled to be held on June 28 at 1028 examination centres across the stateThe discovery prompted authorities to postpone the examination before it was conductedSIT continues investigationFollowing the detection of the leak an FIR was registered at the Bhiwandi Police Station and the Maharashtra government constituted a Special Investigation Team to probe the caseInvestigators are examining the role of multiple accused the alleged interstate network involved in the leak and how confidential examination material was accessed and circulated ahead of the testPolice said further custodial interrogation of the alleged mastermind and his associate is expected to help uncover the full extent of the racket and identify any additional individuals involved