Thane, 27 June

The Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) 2026 in Maharashtra was postponed on Saturday, a day before it was to be held, after police in Thane district found that a part of its question paper had been leaked.

As the development which affected six lakh candidates followed the national scandal caused by the last month’s leak of the NEET-UG paper, Opposition leaders trained their guns on the BJP-led government, saying it was busy breaking political parties instead of ensuring foolproof examinations.

While police said they had arrested three persons from Bhiwandi in Thane district in connection with the leak and exposed an “inter-state syndicate”, authorities said the revised exam schedule will be published on the website of the Maharashtra State Council of Examination (MSCE).

Police have formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) and multiple teams have been sent to other states to trace the source of the leak, officials said.

Bhiwandi Police in Thane district arrested three individuals, originally from Bihar and Haryana, with copies of the TET-2026 question paper, according to an official release. An SIT headed by Deputy Commissioner of Police Pawan Bansod is probing the case, it said.

“On June 27, DCP (Zone-2) of Bhiwandi, Pawan Bansod, received a confidential tip-off that a few individuals were planning to sell the leaked question papers of the upcoming TET exam. Multiple police teams verified the information and detained three suspects. Police recovered copies of the TET exam papers scheduled for Sunday,” the release said.

Education department officials confirmed that the seized papers were indeed the original question papers for the June 28 examination, it stated, adding that the arrested men belonged to an inter-state syndicate.

A case was registered at the Kongaon police station under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Maharashtra Competitive Examination (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024, and the Maharashtra Prevention of Malpractices at University, Board and Other Specified Examinations Act. Offences under the Maharashtra Competitive Examination Act are non-bailable, officials said.

“Given the gravity of the situation….the exam scheduled for June 28, 2026, has been postponed,” the MSCE said, adding that the postponement was necessary to ensure absolute transparency and to allow police to conduct a through, uncompromised investigation.

The council urged candidates not to believe rumours, and said that revised dates for the exam will be published soon on its website.

MSCE Deputy Commissioner Priya Shinde said the process of organising an examination of this scale typically takes around three weeks. “Candidates who had registered for the examination will not have to register again. Since the candidates are not at fault, no re-registration fee will be charged,” she said.

Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde termed the paper leak “highly outrageous”, saying he will speak to CM Devendra Fadnavis for registration of a case under the stringent Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) against its masterminds.

State Congress chief Harshwardhan Sapkal, however, noted that the paper leak took place in Thane district, Shinde’s political stronghold. “Who is giving political protection to the racket that is ruining the hard work, dreams, and future of lakhs of students?” he asked, demanding strict action against those responsible.

Vijay Wadettiwar, another Congress leader, wondered whether those behind the paper leaks were enjoying political or administrative protection.

BJP spokesperson Ram Kulkarni hit back at Sapkal, saying, “Maharashtra government cancelled the TET examination as it learned about the alleged malpractice. The state has demonstrated that it does not compromises over the issues concerning to the student’s future. People have welcomed this move but Sapkal is more interested in politicising the issue instead of trying to understand the reality.” Cockroach Janta Party founder Abhijeet Dipke alleged in Delhi that the TET paper leak once again showed the government’s failure to ensure the integrity of competitive examinations.

“First NEET, now Maharashtra TET exam got leaked and called off at the last minute. Students and teachers have been screaming about TET scams since 2017, but the authorities would rather push our youth into a dead-end than fix the system,” he said.

“It is clear now; the TET paper leak in Maharashtra proves, whether on the state level or national level, the BJP government can’t conduct even a single exam. All they can do is break political parties and poach MLAs and MPs,” Dipke said.

NCP (SP) spokesperson Amol Matele said no examination is safe anymore.

“Earlier, the question papers of CBSE, NEET-UG, and several other competitive exams were leaked. This government has broken political parties and poached MPs, now it seems it has become known for leaks and betrayal as well,” he alleged.

Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray also took a swipe at the BJP, saying that instead of breaking political parties, it should have focused on preventing recurring paper leaks.

In a post on X, Aaditya said the TET paper leak is the latest in a series of such incidents, including the NEET exam and the Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC) exams in the past.

“Should young men and women have to spend every year protesting? When will the youth of our country get the chance to dream about and build their future?” the former minister asked.

Notably, NEET-UG 2026 for undergraduate medical courses was cancelled on May 3 due to a paper leak. The re-test was conducted on June 21.