The Maharashtra government has postponed the Teachers Eligibility Test (TET) 2026 after an alleged question paper leak was detected less than a day before the examination was scheduled to take place. The examination, which was to be conducted on 28 June at 1,028 centres across the state, has now been deferred as authorities investigate the suspected breach.
In an official statement, the Maharashtra State Examination Council said the decision was taken to safeguard the transparency and integrity of the recruitment process. According to Nandkumar Bedse, Director of the Maharashtra State Examination Council, police received confidential information in the early hours of 27 June that certain individuals in Bhiwandi were in possession of material related to the TET question paper.
Acting on the tip-off, Bhiwandi Police conducted a raid and called officials from the examination council to verify the seized documents. During the verification, officials found that several questions matched those in the original TET 2026 examination paper. Following the discovery, a criminal case was registered and an investigation was launched. "The examination has been rescheduled because a detailed investigation is necessary and we want to ensure that the test is conducted in a completely transparent manner," the council said in its statement.
The council added that extensive security measures had been put in place while preparing for the examination, particularly in light of the irregularities reported during the NEET-UG 2026 examination. However, it said postponing the test had become necessary after evidence of the alleged leak emerged. A revised examination date will be announced through the Maharashtra State Examination Council's official website.
The incident has once again raised concerns over the security of competitive examinations in the country. More than 4.28 lakh candidates, including aspiring and serving teachers, had registered for the examination this year, resulting in over six lakh applications across Papers I and II.
According to reports, the leaked question paper had surfaced in the Thane region nearly 24 hours before the examination. Police reportedly recovered the material during an operation and detained several individuals for questioning, although their identities have not been disclosed.
Meanwhile, Nagpur District Primary Education Officer Nilesh Gund told NDTV Marathi that he had not received any official communication regarding the postponement at the time of his statement and was unaware of confirmed reports of a paper leak elsewhere in the state. Police are continuing their investigation to determine how the examination paper was leaked and whether a larger racket was involved.
