Exam paper leak racket busted in Begusarai, one held

Patna: Begusarai police arrested a member of a gang allegedly involved in defrauding students on the pretext of leaking Intermediate examination question papers. The gang operated through a social media platforms, where portions of question papers were allegedly shared and money demanded from students. The main accused, Santosh Kumar, was arrested and is said to have confessed to the crime. Police recovered incriminating material from his cellphone, including answer keys related to the Intermediate chemistry examination. Begusarai police said the gang is also suspected of facilitating impersonation of candidates.

According to police, the crackdown followed inputs that a Telegram channel titled “Bihar Board Out Question” and a WhatsApp group named “Achuk Wan 01” were being used to lure students, parents and coaching centres with promises of providing question papers before examinations. The operation was allegedly conducted in an organised manner, with group settings configured to allow only administrators to post messages, thereby preventing members from questioning the claims.


Acting on a tip-off, Santosh Kumar, a resident of Mauji Thansingh village under the Bakhri police station area, was arrested by a police team three days ago.

Begusarai SP Maneesh said, “The gang circulated some answers related to the question papers. Upon getting information, an FIR was registered by the Bakhri block education officer (BEO), and the accused was arrested.”

During interrogation, he allegedly admitted to circulating portions of question papers on social media to build credibility and trap students. A mobile phone seized from him contained multiple incriminating materials, including a set of objective questions linked to the Intermediate Chemistry examination held on Feb 7, 2026.

He said that when the recovered content was matched with the original question paper, it was identical, strengthening suspicions of a leak and misuse of confidential examination material.

According to police sources, Santosh allegedly demanded Rs 40,000 in exchange for the “complete” matric examination paper for 2026. Messages in the group warned members against bargaining and threatened to block or remove anyone questioning the price. The chats also indicated that buyers were required to purchase papers for all subjects, not just one.

Begusarai SP added, “Cyber teams are examining call detail records, bank transactions and digital evidence, and are working to identify Telegram and WhatsApp administrators. Under the supervision of Bakhri DSP Kundan Kumar, raids are on to trace other members of the syndicate.”