A bitter breakup between a couple has reportedly helped expose an alleged question-paper leak in the Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC) Drug Inspector Group-B examination held in March.
According to police, candidate Rutuja Patil allegedly received access to the leaked questions before the March 22 examination. Her former boyfriend, Gaurav Patil, later informed the MPSC about the alleged malpractice after their relationship ended.
Police said Gaurav sent an email to the commission on July 22 alleging that the examination paper had been leaked. He later tried to withdraw the complaint, but investigators had already started examining the allegations.
Deputy Commissioner of Police Raj Tilak Roshan said, “We submitted a preliminary report and on Wednesday registered a case in the matter.”
How the Question Paper Was Allegedly Leaked
Investigators suspect that the leaked questions were obtained from the MPSC office before being passed through several people.
According to police, MPSC Assistant Section Officer Vishweshwar Nakate allegedly obtained the questions and handed them to Under Secretary Abhijit Lendave. Lendave allegedly passed them to another Assistant Section Officer, Gopal Marathe, who then gave them to Kautalya Academy director Pravin Patil.
Police allege that Pravin subsequently handed the question set to Rutuja’s father, Amrut Namdeo Patil, on March 20, two days before the examination.
Investigators said Amrut allegedly paid ₹5 lakh for the leaked question set. Police also suspect that the total amount involved in the alleged deal was around ₹12 lakh.
Police found that 77 questions from the leaked material matched questions in the examination paper.
Six Arrested in MPSC Paper Leak Case
Six people have been arrested in connection with the alleged leak. They include MPSC officials Abhijit Lendave, Gopal Marathe and Vishweshwar Nakate, coaching institute director Pravin Patil, Rutuja’s father Amrut Patil and her former boyfriend Gaurav Patil.
All six were produced before a court and sent to police custody until September 2.
Police have registered the case under various provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Maharashtra Competitive Examination (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024, and the Prevention of Corruption Act.
MPSC Cancels Drug Inspector Recruitment
The alleged leak has also forced the MPSC to cancel the entire recruitment process for Drug Inspector Group-B posts under the Food and Drug Administration Department.
The screening examination was held on March 22 at six divisional centres across Maharashtra. Its results were announced on June 12, with 506 candidates qualifying for interviews. Of these, 488 candidates appeared for interviews held between July 1 and July 22.
The commission later received complaints alleging that some candidates had obtained the question paper or questions before the examination and that the material had been circulated through electronic platforms.
The MPSC has now decided to conduct a fresh examination. Candidates who had already applied will not have to submit a new application or pay another fee.
The case remains under investigation, with authorities probing the alleged involvement of MPSC officials, the coaching institute, the candidate’s family and others in the suspected paper-leak network.
