The investigation into the Class 12 paper leak case has revealed that the Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics question papers were circulated through three WhatsApp groups shortly before the examination. Police are now working to establish the full chain of the leak and identify the main mastermind behind the incident. According to a police official involved in the probe, the question papers were shared on WhatsApp groups named Tech-1, Next 200 and Excellence barely 30 minutes before the scheduled exam time.

 

Together, these groups had more than 40 student members and four individual accounts. Investigators found that, the Tech-1 group had around 21 members, Next 200 had about 10, while Excellence had nearly 12 students. After the papers were posted in these groups, some students forwarded them to their friends, which led to the papers being widely circulated on social media platforms. Police officials said, the exact person who first leaked the papers has not yet been identified. However, two to three perSo far, Sadar Police have arrested eight accused in connection with the Class 12 science paper leak at St Ursula High School.

 

Among those arrested are Pradeep Bhaiyalal Jangde, Principal of Visakha Junior College; Sandeep Baburao Saratkar, a primary school teacher; Dinesh Kotangale, a biology teacher; and Manish Shambharkar, Director of a coaching institute. During interrogation, police learnt that the primary teacher allegedly obtained the question papers and passed them through a network that eventually reached WhatsApp groups. Earlier, the leak came to light when a Chemistry paper and its answer sheet were found on a student’s mobile phone. The cops have also launched a hunt to arrest Altaf.