Court brands arrested doctor an 'active conspirator' in NEET paper leak, rejects bail

Special Judge Ajay Gupta of Delhi's Rouse Avenue court dismissed Shirure's bail application on Friday, finding him to be "one of the active conspirators of an organised paper leak gang" based on CBI investigation. The judge extended judicial custody of all 13 named accused in the case till August 6.

The CBI alleged that Shirure, a hospital owner and office-bearer in educational institutions in Latur, Maharashtra, took Rs 5 lakh from a candidate's family and allowed access to the leaked chemistry paper at his hospital before the May 3 examination. The agency said he also facilitated access for the son of co-accused Shivraj Raghunath Motegaonkar, a coaching centre founder, and referred two other doctors to alleged kingpin P V Kulkarni, whose children also reportedly benefitted from the leaked paper.

Shirure's counsel argued his role could not be tested solely on the disclosure statement of Kulkarni, and that he had voluntarily joined the investigation on May 19 before his arrest and cooperated fully. The defence said the CBI's case rested mainly on Kulkarni's statement and the recovery of Rs 5 lakh from Shirure's sister's house.

The court rejected this, citing "the nature of allegations, his conduct and the possibility of influencing public witnesses" while the probe remained at a crucial stage. The judge noted the paper leak "impacted millions of NEET aspirants" and caused losses "running into several crores of rupees to the government exchequer."

The National Testing Agency cancelled the May 3 NEET-UG exam on May 12 amid paper leak allegations and held a re-examination on June 21. The CBI filed its first charge sheet on August 1 against the 13 accused.