Gujarat : NEET Exam Cheating Racket Busted

An alarming case of cheating in the NEET exam has emerged from a center in Godhra, Panchmahal district, resulting in an FIR against three individuals. The District Education Officer filed a complaint against Tushar Bhatt, a teacher at Jai Jalaram School in Godhra, Parshuram Rai, owner of Rai Overseas Company in Vadodara, and Arif Vora of Godhra. Tushar Bhatt has been suspended pending further investigation.

District Collector Ashish Kumar received information regarding irregularities during the NEET exam held on May 5. Following this, an investigation was launched by the District Additional Collector and the District Education Officer.

The investigation team discovered Rs 7 lakh in cash in the car of the Deputy Center Superintendent. Additionally, WhatsApp chats on the Deputy Center Superintendent's phone revealed plans to make six students cheat after the exam, demanding Rs 10 lakh from each student.

Senior police officials have initiated an investigation after the complaint was registered at Godhra police station. Panchmahal District Education Officer Kirit Patel stated that the accused conspired to manipulate OMR sheets for six candidates after the NEET exam, with an agreement to extort Rs 10 lakh from each candidate, of which Rs 7 lakh has been recovered so far.

The fraud came to light on May 5 when the Education Department received information about cheating by Tushar Bhatt in the NEET examination at Jai Jalaram School. Upon investigation, WhatsApp messages between Tushar Bhatt and Parashuram Rai were discovered, detailing a scheme involving 11 candidates. The investigation has revealed Parshuram Rai's involvement in the cheating scandal.