India
A handwritten “guess paper” that allegedly matched 120 questions of the NEET-UG 2026 examination has triggered a major investigation after it went viral on WhatsApp and led to the cancellation of the medical entrance test held on May 3. Authorities now say the leak was not a traditional paper breach but a digitally amplified circulation chain spanning multiple states and intermediaries.
The controversy came to light four days after the exam when a group of students and coaching staff in Rajasthan’s Sikar district flagged suspicious similarities between the circulated document and the actual question paper. Acting on the complaint, the National Testing Agency (NTA) alerted the Rajasthan Police, prompting the Special Operations Group (SOG) to launch a detailed probe. The exam was officially cancelled on Tuesday.
According to officials, senior officers including top ranks of the SOG reached Sikar while parallel teams began mapping digital footprints across WhatsApp networks. Investigators also tracked the flow of the document, identifying how a soft copy of the handwritten “guess paper” rapidly spread across states including Rajasthan, Kerala, Uttarakhand, Jammu and Kashmir, Bihar, and Haryana.
Police sources said the suspected origin of the chain leads to Shubham Khairnar, a final-year Bachelor of Ayurvedic Medicine and Surgery (BAMS) student. He allegedly received a physical handwritten document containing a 410-question “guess paper,” which reportedly included 120 questions closely resembling the NEET-UG exam. He is accused of converting it into a digital format and circulating it via WhatsApp to contacts in Gurugram, from where it spread further.
The investigation suggests that the document then passed through multiple intermediaries before reaching students in different states. In one instance, a student from Churu studying in Kerala shared the file with her father, who runs a hostel, further distributing it among students and coaching centres in Rajasthan.
Officials describe the operation as an “unusual form of leak,” differing from earlier cases where candidates were physically gathered to memorise answers after paying money. This time, investigators say, the paper was pre-compiled, handwritten, and distributed widely through digital channels, making containment and identification more difficult.
The SOG also uncovered references to a WhatsApp group reportedly named “Private Mafia,” believed to have facilitated circulation among coaching networks. So far, over 20 individuals have been questioned in connection with the case. Authorities are also examining coaching centres in Jaipur, Sikar, and Kota for possible links.
The suspect was eventually traced to Nashik, Maharashtra, where he was detained on Tuesday. Officials confirmed that coordination with Maharashtra Police has begun, while the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has also entered the probe, signalling a widening investigation into what is being described as one of the most complex examination leak cases in recent years.
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