NEET UG 2026 Re-Exam Scam: In a shocking development during the NEET-UG 2026 re-examination held on June 21, Bihar Police dismantled a sophisticated pan-India “solver gang” operating in the Lakhisarai district.
Despite stringent security measures implemented by the National Testing Agency (NTA) and local administrations, multiple medical students and doctors were caught masquerading as dummy candidates.
The operation has resulted in 24 arrests so far, including 5 elite medical students and 14 employees of a private biometric verification agency.
The ₹40-Lakh Deal: How the Scam Operated
NEET UG 2026 Re-Exam Scam: Investigations spearheaded by Lakhisarai District Magistrate Shailendra Kumar and Superintendent of Police (SP) Prerna Kumar revealed that the solver gang charged exorbitant rates ranging between ₹30 lakh and ₹40 lakh per candidate.
In exchange for this massive sum, highly qualified medical students from prestigious institutions across India were hired to sit for the exam on behalf of the original registered candidates.
To bypass the multi-layered security protocols, the gang targeted the biometric attendance system. They allegedly bribed employees of the private agency responsible for verifying candidates’ identities at the test centers.
In a daring breach at the Hasanpur school center, a third-year MBBS student from Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH) identified as Mayank Kashyap disguised himself as a biometric agency employee to infiltrate the examination hall.
However, alert officials spotted the anomaly, leading to his swift arrest. His subsequent interrogation blew the lid off the entire operation.
High-Profile Arrests: Top Medical Students in Police Net
NEET UG 2026 Re-Exam Scam: The police conducted coordinated raids at three prominent examination centers in Lakhisarai: Government High School (Hasanpur), KRK Higher Secondary School, and Kendriya Vidyalaya.
Out of the 24 individuals arrested, the breakdown highlights a deeply entrenched nexus:
9 ‘Munna Bhai’ Impersonators (Dummy Candidates): Caught directly inside the exam halls. This included 7 from Kendriya Vidyalaya, 1 from KRK School, and 1 from the Hasanpur center.
5 Elite Medical Students: The hired solvers included top brains from premium medical institutes, including PMCH (Patna), Gaya Medical College, AIIMS Raebareli, and Banaras Hindu University (BHU).
14 Biometric Agency Staff: Private operators who compromised their systems to let unauthorized solvers pass through facial and fingerprint scans.
The CBI Connection: Police confirmed that the alleged mastermind of this specific operation, Arpit Raj, has been taken into custody. Arpit is a habitual offender who was previously interrogated multiple times by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) regarding the initial 2024 NEET paper leak cases.
Health Department’s ‘Lockdown’ Strategy Fails
The arrests have cast a shadow over the Bihar Health Department’s preventative security measures. To stop enrolled MBBS students from sneaking out to act as solvers, the Special Secretary of the Health Department had issued a mandatory order.
All state medical colleges, including PMCH, were instructed to conduct mandatory department-wise seminars and quizzes on Sunday, June 21, between 2:00 PM and 5:00 PM (overlapping exactly with the NEET exam timings).
Despite mandatory attendance sheets, students like Mayank Kashyap managed to slip through the cracks and travel to Lakhisarai, exposing severe gaps in institutional monitoring.
The Re-Exam Context: Why Was It Held?
The nationwide NEET-UG 2026 re-examination was organized on Sunday, June 21, across 5,400 centers for over 20 lakh students.
This re-exam became necessary after the original test conducted earlier on June 3 was cancelled due to widespread, confirmed paper leak allegations.
For the re-test, extreme logistical precautions were taken. The question papers were flown into Patna Airport via a special Indian Air Force (IAF) aircraft on June 16, from where they were securely dispatched under heavy military and police escort to regional administrative hubs, including Darbhanga and Gaya.
Paper Analysis: Physics Toughest, Cut-Offs Expected to Drop
Apart from the administrative chaos, academic experts provided insights into the nature of the RE-NEET 2026 question paper, labeling it as “moderate but highly conceptual.”
Physics: Unanimously rated as the toughest and most time-consuming section. Analysts predict that due to the lengthy numerical questions, average scores for students could drop by 10 to 20 marks.
Chemistry: Remained moderate, with a heavy emphasis on direct NCERT textbook questions, particularly in Inorganic Chemistry.
Biology: Rated as the easiest section, providing much-needed relief to candidates.
Impact on Cut-off: Due to the high difficulty level of the Physics section, education experts forecast that the overall NEET-UG 2026 cut-off might slide down by 10 to 15 marks compared to previous trends.
While the police continue to hunt for 10 to 12 more individuals linked to this inter-state racket, this incident highlights that even under extreme surveillance and military-grade paper transport, structural loopholes like biometric tampering remain an uphill battle for Indian competitive exams.
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