Viral claim that 'only Muslims were arrested' in NEET leak case is misleading

What is the claim?

Social media users are sharing a claim that only three men, all from the Muslim community, were arrested in the recent NEET paper leak case. A Facebook user shared a collage (archived here) featuring these three men with the caption: "Md Jamaluddin, Dr Ehsanul Haq, Imtiaz Alam caught in NEET exam leak. Examination jihad (sic)?" Archived versions of similar claims on Facebook and X (formerly Twitter) can be found here, here, and here. 

The NEET-UG (National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test for Undergraduates) is conducted for admission to medical courses in private and government institutes in India. Terms like "exam jihad," akin to "love jihad" or "train jihad," are fringe conspiracy theories used by far-right groups and sympathizers to wrongly blame incidents on Indian Muslims. Logically Facts has previously fact-checked similar claims involving these theories here and here.

Screenshot of the claim made by users on social media. (Source: Facebook/X/Modified by Logically Facts)

The claim surfaced shortly after reports of an alleged leak of the 2024 NEET examination paper and irregularities in the results declared on June 4, 2024. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has launched an inquiry into the issue, and various law enforcement authorities have made 30 arrests so far. However, the suggestion that only men belonging to one particular community have been arrested in this case is false. 

What we found

A Google search led us to an Indian Express report from July 1, 2024, which listed the names of those arrested in the case so far. The report lists the following names — Sanjeev Mukhiya, Baldev Kumar, Nitish Kumar, Amit Anand, Manish Prakashm Ashutosh Kumar, Roshan Kumar, Awadhesh Kumar, Sikander Yadavendu and eight others, Mukesh Kumar, Panku Kumar, Paramjit Singh, Rajiv Kumar, Ehsanul Haque, Imtiaz Alam, Mohd Jamaludin, Purshottam Sharma, Tushar Bhatt, Arif Vohra, Parshuram Roy, and Vibhor Anand Umeshwar Prasad Singh.

We reviewed the FIRs registered in the case and found that the first FIR (archived here), filed by the police on May 5, names the following individuals as accused: Nitish, Rocky, Akhilesh Kumar, Sikander Yaduvendu, Ayush Raj, Sanjeev Singh, Bittu Kumar, and Amit Anand.

Screenshot of the FIR by the Shantinagar Police Station in Patna, Bihar, that names the accused. (Source: scrb.bihar.gov.in)

On May 21, the Economic Offences Unit in Deogarh, Jharkhand, filed another FIR (archived here), this time naming Paramjit Singh, Baldev Kumar, Prashant Kumar, Ajit Kumar, Rajiv Kumar, and Pinku Kumar as accused.

Screenshot of the FIR by the Economic Offences Unit, Bihar, that names the accused. (Source: scrb.bihar.gov.in)

On June 20, the CBI registered an FIR based on a complaint from the Union Education Ministry, although it did not specify any names, referring to the accused as 'unknown persons.'

Screenshot of the FIR registered by the CBI (Source: cbi.gov.in)

According to an India Today report, the CBI made its first arrest in the NEET case on June 27 in Patna, Bihar, detaining Manish Prakash and Ashutosh. Earlier, Tushar Bhatt, Purshottam Sharma, Vibhor Anand, Arif Vohra, and Dixit Patel were detained by the CBI in Godhra, Gujarat, as reported by the Indian Express. The report also identifies Sanjeev Kumar from Nalanda, Bihar, as allegedly the mastermind behind the leak.

On June 29, the Indian Express reported that the CBI arrested Jamaluddin Ansari, Ehsanul Haque, and Imtiaz Alam from Hazaribagh, Jharkhand, under sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including 120B (criminal conspiracy) and 420 (cheating), among others.

This reveals that the list of those arrested includes three Muslim men among more than 30 individuals detained and students questioned in this case.

The NEET-UG exam this year took place on May 5, with over 23 lakh candidates participating. However, the exam was marred by allegations of paper leaks, leading to student protests and subsequent arrests by local police. Following intense political reactions, the CBI assumed control of the investigation from local authorities.

The verdict

While three Muslim men have been arrested in connection with the NEET paper leak case, it is important to note that the others apprehended are predominantly from other communities.