NEET-UG 2026 Paper Leak: CBI Files Chargesheet Against 13 Including NTA Experts

New Delhi: The CBI has filed a chargesheet against 13 people, including three National Testing Agency-appointed subject experts, in an alleged multi-state conspiracy to leak NEET-UG 2026 examination papers.

The chargesheet was submitted before the Special CBI Court at Rouse Avenue. The accused include NTA experts, coaching operators, intermediaries and candidates. They have been booked under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Prevention of Corruption Act and the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024.

According to the agency, the conspiracy began with Botany expert Manisha Gurunath Mandhare, Chemistry expert Prahlad Vithalrao Kulkarni and Physics expert Manisha Sanjay Havaldar. The three allegedly used their access to confidential examination material to obtain and share questions before the test.

Investigators say the papers were subsequently passed through a network of brokers and coaching operators.

The CBI alleges that the leaked papers were then distributed through a structured network involving Tejas Shah (A-4), Shivraj Motegaonkar (A-5), Dr Manoj Shirure (A-6), Manisha Sanjay Waghmare (A-7), Dhananjay Lokhande (A-8), Shubham Madhukar Khairnar (A-9), Yash Yadav (A-10), Mangilal Biwal (A-11), Dinesh Biwal (A-12) and Vikas Biwal (A-13), each of whom allegedly played specific roles in circulating the papers and arranging payments.

The material was allegedly exchanged as PDFs and images on Telegram and WhatsApp, with digital evidence recovered from mobile phones, pen drives and other electronic devices.

The CBI has alleged that Yash Yadav sent leaked questions to Mangilal Biwal through Telegram. Biwal reportedly handed over his school certificates and a signed blank cheque as security for the transaction. The documents were later recovered during searches, according to the chargesheet.

Yadav allegedly sourced the material from Shubham Madhukar Khairnar, a Nashik-based accused. Investigators reportedly found chats between Yadav and a contact saved as “AP Broker”, which the agency identified as Khairnar, along with files containing the purported examination questions.

The CBI further claims that Khairnar obtained the papers from Dhananjay Lokhande in a transaction worth ₹25 lakh. Lokhande allegedly received the material from Manisha Sanjay Waghmare, who is accused of arranging the movement of physical copies through intermediaries.

A phone seized from Waghmare’s residence reportedly contained a WhatsApp group titled “NEET 2026”. The agency also alleges that she was in contact with Kulkarni and obtained Biology and Chemistry questions through students connected to the NTA experts.

The chargesheet includes statements from candidates and other witnesses. In one case, the CBI alleges that a candidate and her father were offered the NEET-UG 2026 question paper for ₹4 lakh.

The alleged arrangement also included coaching assistance and offline revision sessions conducted by one of the subject experts. The agency said the interactions took place between late 2025 and early 2026.

The CBI has identified Tejas Shah, Shivraj Motegaonkar, Dr Manoj Shirure, Manisha Sanjay Waghmare, Dhananjay Lokhande, Shubham Madhukar Khairnar, Yash Yadav, Mangilal Biwal, Dinesh Biwal and Vikas Biwal as alleged members of the network, alongside the three NTA experts.

The agency says chat records, forensic findings, seized documents and witness accounts establish the alleged conspiracy and the unauthorised circulation of examination material.