The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which has been entrusted with probing the NEET UG 2026 paper leak case, stumbled upon a startling development on Thursday. Officials said a group of National Testing Agency (NTA) paper setters gained access to the final NEET UG 2026 question paper while translating it into Marathi and ended up leaking portions of it through a network of coaching operators. 

As per the agency, three teachers who were part of the NTA’s paper setting panel were assigned the dual responsibility of preparing exam questions as well as translating the final paper into the Marathi language. The CBI alleged that this arrangement paved the way for them to access the final version of the examination, enabling them to memorise several questions before the May 3, 2026 test. 

The agency earlier swooped down on the accused, identified as PV Kulkarni, a Chemistry teacher, Physics teacher Manisha Gurunath Mandhare and Biology teacher Manisha Sanjay Havaldar. 

Exam questions passed on to coaching students

The CBI sleuths claim that the accused teachers prepared what effectively turned into a ‘question bank’ based on the actual examination paper by memorising selected questions during the translation process.

Furthermore, the agency alleged that the teachers later highlighted some of these questions as ‘very important’ during coaching sessions conducted in Pune, where they taught students preparing for competitive exams. Students, as per the CBI, were not informed that the questions allegedly originated from the final NEET UG 2026 question paper. 

Although the paper setters were housed in a secluded environment while carrying out confidential exam-related work, the CBI investigators unearthed that they were permitted to return home, resume coaching classes and later continue with their official assignments. The agency believes this provided the passage for the paper leak to unfold. 

Leaked PDF circulated across the country

The CBI probe has also traced the alleged propagation of the leaked material beyond the coaching classes. According to the agency, Pune-based beautician Manisha Waghmare, who was acquainted with all three accused paper setters, allegedly collected the questions from students who had attended the close-knit coaching session. She is accused of compiling the questions into a PDF document and later sold it to Dhananjay Lokhande. 

The CBI personnel alleged that Lokhande then distributed the document further, facilitating the circulation of the purported leaked questions across multiple parts of the country. The agency officials said Waghmare and Lokhande played a key role in expanding the reach of the alleged leak beyond Pune, allowing the material to spread through a wider network ahead of the examination. 

CBI files chargesheet against 13 accused; probe underway

The CBI said it has informed the NTA about the alleged procedural shortcomings uncovered during its probe and is expected to submit a comprehensive report recommending measures to ramp up the exam’s security framework. 

The agency on Tuesday filed its first chargesheet in connection with the paper leak incident, in which it named 13 accused, all of whom are currently in judicial custody. The agency’s officials said the probe into the incident has deepened and is still in progress.