NEET UG 2026 Paper Leak: The CBI has cited several digital and forensic evidence in its charge sheet filed in the NEET UG 2026 paper leak case. This includes records from the entry management app of a residential society in Pune, where NTA chemistry expert and accused PV Kulkarni lived.
The CBI filed a charge sheet against 13 accused in a special court on July 28. According to officials, the records obtained from the society’s app include biometric entries of students who attended special coaching classes organized by Kulkarni in April.
What was found in the society’s records?
The CBI verified the presence of students and their parents in the society through the app records. These people had visited Kulkarni’s society in April, a few days before the NEET UG exam. The agency also compared these records with call detail records (CDRs) and location analysis of students’ mobile phones. The NEET UG exam was held on May 3.
Which three NTA experts are at the center of the investigation?
The CBI investigation revealed the role of three subject experts from Pune, who were on the NTA panel: PV Kulkarni (Chemistry); Manisha Gurunath Mandhare (Zoology and Botany); and Manisha Sanjay Havaldar (Physics). The agency alleges that these individuals exploited flaws in the NTA’s examination process to obtain confidential questions and then circulate them for payment.
What information was obtained from the coaching classes?
According to the CBI, beautician Manisha Sanjay Waghmare sent students to special coaching classes held by Kulkarni and Mandhare in April. The students’ answer sheets were filled with questions prescribed by the experts. Some questions were marked as “important” and “very important.” According to the agency, this material was later distributed to Rajasthan and Haryana through a chain of students and intermediaries.
16 Pages Containing 68 Physics Questions
The CBI has also mentioned the role of a constable. It is alleged that, at Mandhare’s behest, he provided 16 pages containing 68 Physics questions to a candidate’s mother. The investigating agency sent the leaked questions and other material obtained from various students and intermediaries to an expert panel constituted by Delhi University. The investigation revealed varying degrees of match between these materials and four NEET UG 2026 paper sets. According to the CBI, the matching of questions was up to 85% for the sets the experts had access to. The matching was significantly lower for the sets they did not have access to.
Allegations of flaws in NTA’s process
According to the CBI, the preparation, translation, and back-translation of NEET question papers were carried out in a controlled environment at the NTA’s Okhla building. The agency alleges that the accused exploited flaws in these processes. According to the charge sheet, Kulkarni made short notes of the questions, memorized some questions, and re-prepared them after returning to the hotel. The agency alleges that he back-translated three sets of NEET UG 2026, and the Chemistry set yielded the highest number of matches to the leaked material.