The CBI has chargesheeted 13 accused, including three NTA-appointed subject experts, in the alleged NEET-UG 2026 paper leak case.
The agency alleges questions were noted on chits, memorized or linked to NCERT passages before being circulated through intermediaries and messaging platforms.
A candidate was allegedly offered access to the question paper for ₹4 lakh, along with coaching and revision support.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has alleged that three National Testing Agency (NTA) subject experts were involved in leaking confidential NEET-UG 2026 question papers to intermediaries before the medical entrance exam. In a chargesheet filed before the Special CBI Court at Delhi’s Rouse Avenue, the agency named 13 accused and alleged that the questions were passed through a network of middlemen and coaching operators to selected candidates for money.
The three NTA-appointed subject experts named in the CBI chargesheet are Prahlad Vithalrao Kulkarni (Chemistry), Manisha Gurunath Mandhare (Botany) and Manisha Sanjay Havaldar (Physics). The CBI alleges that they used their access to confidential examination work to retain questions before the NEET-UG 2026 exam.
According to ThePrint, Kulkarni allegedly wrote Chemistry questions and answer options on small chits using sheets provided for rough work, while also memorizing some easier questions to write down later at his hotel. Havaldar allegedly noted Physics questions after returning to her accommodation, while Mandhare allegedly marked relevant passages in NCERT textbooks after her daily work.
The chargesheet stated, “There was no practice of checking/frisking of experts during entry/exit from the confidential section at NTA.”
The CBI alleged that Havaldar translated one Physics set and back-translated three sets, after which she noted questions in brief on returning to her hotel in Delhi. Mandhare was assigned Botany translation and Zoology back-translation work between March 9 and April 5, 2026, and allegedly marked relevant portions of NCERT textbooks after each day’s work.
Kulkarni, meanwhile, allegedly handled back-translation of three question sets, comprising 135 questions, between March 31 and April 2, 2026. The agency said he used plain sheets supplied for rough work to note down questions and answer options.
The CBI further alleged that experts were not frisked when entering or leaving the confidential section and that CCTV footage at NTA headquarters was not monitored, which it said allowed the alleged activity to go undetected.
The alleged questions were subsequently moved through intermediaries and messaging platforms, according to the CBI. Investigators examined mobile phones, pen drives and other electronic devices and recovered PDF and image files, chats and documents that the agency said helped trace the circulation of the material.
The questions allegedly moved through WhatsApp and Telegram. One WhatsApp group identified during the investigation was named “FIFA World Cup 2026” and was allegedly used to connect with selected candidates.
The CBI alleged that Biology questions passed from Mandhare to Manisha Sanjay Waghmare, who also received Chemistry questions. Waghmare allegedly forwarded them to Dhananjay Lokhande, who passed them to Shubham Khairnar. The questions were then allegedly sent to Yash Yadav in Gurugram before being distributed further.
A separate route allegedly involved Latur-based doctor Manoj Shirure, who shared Chemistry questions with Shivraj Motegaonkar, the owner of RCC Coaching Institute in Latur.
The CBI alleged that some candidates were offered access to the NEET-UG 2026 question paper for ₹4 lakh, with coaching and revision support forming part of the arrangement. The agency’s chargesheet also alleges that candidates were approached months before the May 2026 examination.
According to the chargesheet, the alleged leak preparations began in October 2025, with Waghmare approaching aspirants for NEET coaching in Pune. Mandhare allegedly conducted Biology sessions, while Kulkarni held Chemistry classes from April 25 to 27, 2026, involving 10 students who were allegedly given questions through NCERT-based exercises and written material.
The chargesheet lists 360 witnesses, 422 documents and 43 material objects as evidence in the case. It alleges offences including criminal conspiracy, cheating, criminal breach of trust and destruction of evidence under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, along with alleged criminal misconduct under the Prevention of Corruption Act and offences under the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024.
A CBI source, referring to one candidate’s biology notebook, told ThePrint: “From here the questions then went to others outside this circle and Waghmare made more money.”
The allegations also raise questions about safeguards for confidential examination material at the NTA, particularly the handling of question papers by subject experts before the exam.
The claims form part of the CBI’s chargesheet and have not been established by a court. The criminal liability of the accused will be determined through judicial proceedings and the evidence considered by the court.
(Rh/TP/MSM)