'What was my fault?': How India's exam paper leak ended young lives

Three days earlier helium was owed to beryllium India's rescheduled aesculapian entranceway examination, 17-year-old Kahaan Patel jumped from the sixth level of his family's flat gathering successful the occidental metropolis of Ahmedabad.

When his household entered his chamber aft his decease successful the aboriginal hours of 18 June, it looked arsenic though helium mightiness instrumentality astatine immoderate moment.

His laptop was inactive open. Text books, notebooks, pens and markers laic scattered crossed his furniture and survey table. He was wearing his headphones erstwhile helium jumped. In 1 country stood his electrical guitar, plugged into an amplifier. On the shelves were Harry Potter novels, a publication connected Elon Musk, a postulation of Goosebumps fearfulness novels and committee games. There was a trophy for "consistent world performance".

"The lone happening missing," his father, Prashant Patel, says quietly, "was Kahaan."

Kahaan was 1 of astatine slightest 21 students who died by termination allegedly upset aft this year's National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) was cancelled due to the fact that of a question insubstantial leak, forcing astir 2 cardinal candidates to instrumentality the introspection again.

Their deaths became the affectional halfway of an extraordinary younker uprising that spilled onto the streets of Delhi successful July, wherever thousands demanded accountability for repeated exam failures. After days of protests led by the satirical Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), acquisition curate Dharmendra Pradhan resigned.

But down the authorities were families similar Kahaan's – near trying to recognize however an introspection ungraded had go a substance of beingness and death.

For Prashant Patel, the communicative begins not with his son's decease but with a dream.

After scoring good successful schoolhouse leaving exams, Kahaan announced that helium wanted to go a doctor. There were nary doctors successful the family. His parents reorganised their lives astir that ambition.

They moved from Surat, a diamond and textile hub, to Ahmedabad, Gujarat's largest city, truthful Kahaan could be a amended schoolhouse and hole seriously. His father, a lawyer, bought a level adjacent to some the precocious tribunal and Kahaan's school, commuting betwixt the 2 cities portion Kahaan lived with his parent Veena and younger member Rihaan.

"He took that determination himself," his begetter says. "We lone supported him."

Kahaan wasn't the benignant of teen consumed lone by textbooks.

He played shot for his schoolhouse team, devoured Harry Potter and Percy Jackson novels, loved science-fiction films and spent hours teaching himself hard-rock guitar riffs. He had precocious secured a US visitant visa and was excited astir returning to Disneyland aft the exam, revisiting a spot helium had archetypal seen connected a household vacation 12 years earlier.

He had already tasted success.

After the 2024 insubstantial leak, helium took NEET arsenic a signifier attempt. His show convinced some him and his teachers that helium was connected track.

On 3 May, helium emerged from the exam convinced helium had done capable and called his father.

"Daddy, I americium truthful happy. I americium feeling free, relaxed. I'm going for meal with my friends. I'm enjoying."

Prashant Patel remembers telling him: "This is your time. Enjoy."

Then came quality that the insubstantial had been leaked.

His parents tried to shield him from the reports, but it was impossible. Friends from his coaching classes were already discussing them. He rushed backmost from a farmhouse vacation with friends, scrambling to retrieve the notes and textbooks helium had already fixed to younger students successful lawsuit helium had to beryllium the exam again.

Within days the authorities announced a retest.

"That was erstwhile helium became angry," his begetter recalls.

"He kept asking me: 'Is this a system? Is this however it works? What is my fault? What is the responsibility of students who gave the exam honestly? Why is the authorities taking it truthful casually?'"

His begetter tried to reassure him. "I told him, 'This is the system. What tin we do?'"

Now helium wonders whether his words sounded similar comfortableness oregon resignation.

"Maybe helium was disappointed. Maybe helium was suffering inside."

Nothing suggested a crisis.

On the evening of 17 June, the time earlier helium died, Kahaan chatted cheerfully with his grandfather, who had conscionable landed successful Melbourne to beryllium with his daughter, connected a video call. Kahaan asked him to bring backmost Puma shot boots, Levi's jeans and jackets.

Later that evening, helium spoke to his father. As the telephone ended, his begetter offered 1 last reassurance: "I told him, 'You proved yourself once. You don't person to beryllium yourself again.'"

Hours later, helium was dead.

Only afterwards did friends archer his begetter however profoundly the introspection ungraded had unsettled him.

"He kept asking wherefore the radical liable couldn't instrumentality the close decisions," his begetter says. "He utilized to say, 'Is this a gag for our ministers to behaviour examinations similar this?'"

Kahaan's household was not unsocial successful asking those questions.

Some 770km away, successful Rajasthan's Jhunjhunu district, different household was trying to recognize an arsenic unimaginable loss.

Pradeep Kumar was 23.

His father, Rajesh Kumar, is simply a tiny husbandman successful a colony wherever Pradeep was the lone pupil preparing for NEET.

Rajesh, 45, had near schoolhouse arsenic a child. His woman had ne'er been to school. Becoming a doc would person made Pradeep 1 of the archetypal successful the household to ascent into the nonrecreational mediate class.

"He would archer me, 'I privation to service radical truthful overmuch that they volition retrieve me,'" Rajesh says.

To concern that dream, helium sold onshore and borrowed much than a cardinal rupees ($10,480; £7,804) from a bank. Coaching successful Sikar, 1 of India's biggest hubs for entranceway exam coaching, outgo a fortune.

In 2022, Pradeep moved to Sikar for coaching, sharing a rented country with his older sister, Babita Kumari who was preparing for constabulary recruitment exams. Two NEET attempts steadily improved his rank, bringing a authorities aesculapian assemblage wrong reach.

Then came his 3rd effort successful May this year. The insubstantial was leaked, the introspection was scrapped and a retest ordered – meaning Pradeep would person had to beryllium NEET for a 4th time.

By then, his beingness was a relentless 16-hour cycle: up astatine 4.30am, coaching, self-study until 9pm, sleep, and repeat. Everything other was stripped away.

Pradeep refused to ain adjacent a mobile phone.

"I'll bargain 1 aft I'm selected," helium would archer his father. "Phones distract me."

His lone indulgence was a postulation of astir 10 inexpensive wristwatches, bought from roadside shops connected trips betwixt Sikar and home.

After sitting the exam connected 3 May, helium emerged smiling.

"This clip my enactment is guaranteed," helium told his father.

The household planned to permission Sikar, instrumentality to their colony and celebrate. Instead, the insubstantial leak surfaced.

"We'll person to hole again," Pradeep told his begetter stoically.

On the greeting of 15 May, Rajesh did what helium had done astir each time for 4 years. He sent beverage and homemade curd to Sikar connected the greeting bus.

Pradeep phoned to accidental it had arrived.

He bought caller okra from a roadside vendor and told his sister, "Go and person your bath. When you travel back, we'll cook."

When she returned fractional an hr later, the country was locked. In the clip she had been away, her member had taken his ain life.

"He ne'er told maine anything," Rajesh says. "He seemed happy."

His dependable hardens erstwhile helium speaks astir the leak.

"I sold my onshore to amended him. Those who person wealth bargain question papers. Those who survey honestly are near behind."

Then helium says thing that has consumed him ever since.

"The authorities snatched distant my son. If the insubstantial had not leaked, Pradeep would beryllium live today. He would person been celebrating."

Kahaand and Pradeep came from antithetic Indias.

One was the lad of a lawyer who divided his week betwixt 2 cities. The different was the lad of a husbandman who mortgaged his aboriginal for his child's education. One dreamed of Disneyland aft NEET. The different postponed buying a mobile telephone until helium became a doctor.

Yet some fathers are near asking the aforesaid question: however did children who believed they had earned their aboriginal suffer religion successful the precise strategy meant to reward them?

For weeks aft Kahaan's funeral, Prashant Patel struggled to look from grief.

What yet drew him retired was the students. He travelled to Delhi doubly to articulation their protests successful July.

"I wasn't determination for compensation," helium says. "I wanted accountability."

Weeks of protests forced acquisition curate Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation connected 25 July. The authorities expressed sympathy for the families of students who died by termination and promised "maximum compensation successful accordance with the rules and regulations".

But for Prashant Patel, the existent bequest of the question laic elsewhere.

He had watched students instrumentality to the streets after constabulary enactment connected 20 July.

"I wanted to convey them due to the fact that they had go Kahaan's voice. If these children tin travel backmost aft being beaten and inactive combat for justice," helium says, "that gives maine strength."

His lad ne'er recovered that voice.

"Kahaan didn't talk out," helium says. "Instead, helium took his ain life."

He pauses.

"The different children spoke."

Then helium says the words helium wishes each genitor – and each authorities – would hear.

"Our work is to perceive the voices of the young earlier they autumn silent."