CBI files charge sheet against 13 in NEET paper leak case: No govt role, handwritten notes, searches at 92 locations

According to the charge sheet, no government official, including any office bearer of the NTA, was involved in the leak.

Investigation Overview

The agency said it has relied on 360 witnesses, 422 documents and 43 material objects to support the prosecution. (ANI)

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Tuesday filed a charge sheet against all 13 arrested accused in the alleged NEET-UG 2026 question paper leak case, saying its investigation has traced the leak from the paper setters to the beneficiary candidates and uncovered the entire chain of the alleged conspiracy.

The charge sheet, filed before Delhi’s Rouse Avenue court, invokes charges of criminal conspiracy, cheating, criminal breach of trust, destruction of evidence, and offences under the Prevention of Corruption Act and the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024.

The agency said it has relied on 360 witnesses, 422 documents and 43 material objects to support the prosecution. “All 13 charge-sheeted persons are in judicial custody as on date,” the CBI said in a statement.

The court is likely to take up the matter on Wednesday, they said.

The agency said it had “acted swiftly to unearth the source of the leak within weeks of the registration of the case” and established the complete chain of events. “The path from source of the leakage to the beneficiary candidates was unearthed, leading to the identification of the chain,” it said.

According to the CBI, searches were conducted at 92 locations across Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Haryana, Delhi and other states. Investigators seized digital devices, communication equipment and documents, and carried out forensic analysis of the material collected.

“Digital forensic analysis reports, handwriting expert opinions and academic experts’ opinions regarding leaked questions have been obtained. These reports confirmed the role of accused in circulation of leaked questions prior to the date of examination,” the agency said.

Subject experts among accused

Among those charge-sheeted are three subject experts contracted by the National Testing Agency (NTA) to set the Chemistry, Biology and Physics papers, several alleged middlemen and two persons linked to coaching institutes. The CBI said the first arrest was made on May 13.

“A total of 13 accused have been arrested in the case which included three NTA subject experts of Chemistry, Biology and Physics. Several middlemen who have sourced and distributed these leaked questions have also been identified and arrested,” it said.

The agency said two coaching institute-linked individuals allegedly obtained the leaked questions from the paper setters and helped circulate them. Investigators also traced the financial trail and froze several bank accounts, lockers and a demat account linked to the accused.

No govt officials involved

According to the charge sheet, no government official, including any office bearer of the NTA, was involved in the leak. Investigators concluded that the question paper was leaked by teachers contracted to set the examination.

Those named in the charge sheet include Chemistry paper-setter PV Kulkarni, Biology paper-setter Manisha Mandhare and Physics paper-setter Manisha Havaldar. Since all accused are private individuals, the CBI does not require prior prosecution sanction to proceed with the case.

According to investigators, Kulkarni allegedly conducted special coaching sessions at his Pune residence in April, where leaked Chemistry questions along with answer options and correct answers were dictated to selected students. Mandhare allegedly had access to Botany and Zoology questions by April 27 and disclosed them to students during classes held at her residence.

Handwritten notes recovered during the investigation allegedly matched questions that later appeared in the examination.

The alleged leak prompted the NTA to cancel the original May 3 examination on May 12 after receiving an email alleging a leak and identifying overlaps between a circulated “guess paper” and the actual question paper. A re-test was conducted on June 21.

The NTA declared the re-examination results on July 16. Around 1.1 million candidates qualified for nearly 137,000 MBBS seats, apart from undergraduate dental, AYUSH and allied health programmes.

The CBI said further investigation is continuing and that it remains “committed to ensuring those responsible for such offences face the full legal consequences for their actions.”