New Delhi: On Friday, the Rouse Avenue court granted bail to Gangadhar Gunde, who claimed his arrest by the CBI in connection with a NEET paper scam was due to mistaken identity. The case, originally registered by the Latur Police at Shivaji Nagar Police Station, was taken over by the CBI.
Gangadhar Gunde was arrested by the CBI on June 26 in Dehradun. Special CBI Judge Ankit Singla granted him bail after hearing arguments from both the CBI and Gunde’s counsel. Bail was granted upon furnishing a bail bond of Rs 25,000 and a surety bond of the same amount.
Advocate Kailash More, representing Gunde, argued that the arrest was a result of mistaken identity. He explained that the FIR filed by the CBI for the NEET UG exam 2024 mentioned a person named Gangadhar, but did not reveal the full name. Subsequently, another individual, N Gangadhar Appa Nanjuthappa, was arrested by the CBI in Bengaluru.
More detailed that Gunde’s name emerged during the investigation because he met Sanjay Tukaram Jadhav on October 2 in Osmanabad regarding a matrimonial dispute involving his daughter. The two exchanged mobile numbers, and Gunde called Jadhav on October 3.
The CBI’s counsel disputed this, arguing that suspect Irenna Konagalwar, who is currently at large, could clarify the identity confusion. The CBI emphasized that they have already arrested N Gangadhar Appa Nanjuthappa and that the mobile number associated with the case was used by Gunde.
The CBI stated that Gunde’s name came up during the interrogation of arrested teachers Sanjay Tukaram Jadhav and Jalil Umar Khan Pathan, who linked him to the scam. The CBI argued that Gunde was arrested based on a complaint by the Inspector of ATS Maharashtra Police, which named four individuals, including Gunde.
The investigation revealed that Jadhav and Pathan were involved in collecting token money and admit cards from NEET aspirants, which were then sent to Konagalwar, who allegedly passed them to Gangadhar in Delhi to manipulate exam scores.
Gunde was arrested on the night of June 25-26 in Dehradun as part of one of five cases registered by the CBI. He was produced before the Rouse Avenue Court on June 27 and remanded to CBI custody until June 30, then sent to judicial custody on July 12.
