NEET UG rigging scam: This is how CBI found out that medical seats are sold for Rs 20 to 25 lakh

Rs 20 lakh, that's how much National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) seats cost, finds Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) after busting a gang who were allegedly impersonating real candidates to help them crack the exam.

"Each aspirant used to give around Rs 20 lakh for securing a seat, out of which, four to five lakh was given to the solver and rest was shared between middlemen and others," said a CBI source.

The agency is now probing the role of a few doctors involved in the case.

The agency had arrested eight accused for allegedly impersonating real candidates to help them with the NEET examination for undergraduate medical courses. NEET exam was held on July 17.

CBI on Sunday, July 17, had registered a first information report (FIR) after receiving reliable information that several people conspired to arrange solvers to impersonate real candidates for the NEET exam conducted by National Testing Agency (NTA) at several centres in Delhi and Haryana.

The agency carried out multiple raids on Monday, July 18, and arrested the eight accused, including mastermind Sushil Ranjan and paper solvers.

"The user IDs and passwords of the candidates appearing for the examination were collected by the suspects and their associates and necessary modifications were made for getting desired examination centres as planned by them," said a CBI officer.

"They also used the process of mixing/morphing photographs to facilitate the use of proxy candidates for appearing in the examination. Copies of identity cards of candidates were collected for the purpose of making forged ID cards." The paper solvers, who appeared as proxy candidates, arrived in Delhi on Saturday and Sunday and stayed in hotels.