New Delhi: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), in its chargesheet filed in the alleged NEET-UG 2026 paper leak case, has claimed that three National Testing Agency (NTA) subject experts managed to take confidential examination questions out of the NTA’s office in Delhi through different methods, exploiting security lapses, including the absence of frisking at the confidential section and the lack of dedicated CCTV monitoring.
The chargesheet, filed before the Rouse Avenue Court, alleges that the three experts — entrusted with translation, back-translation and proofreading of question papers — extracted questions in Chemistry, Biology and Physics before the May 3 examination.
According to the CBI, one accused allegedly wrote down all Chemistry questions and answer options on small paper slips concealed on his person, while the other two allegedly memorised questions and either wrote them down after returning to their hotel or residence or marked the relevant portions in NCERT textbooks.
“Investigation has revealed that experts were provided with plain sheets inside the confidential section for rough work during translation/back translation. Accused P.V. Kulkarni (A-2) has used these sheets to note down, on small chits, all 135 questions of Chemistry in brief and the answer options and took them out in a concealed manner,” the chargesheet stated.
The probe agency claimed that the accused could do so because “there was no practice of checking/frisking of experts during entry/exit from confidential section at NTA”.
“For easier questions, he could simply remember them and write them down in a book once he returned to his room in the hotel at the end of the day,” the chargesheet further says, adding that Kulkarni carried out back-translation work for three Chemistry question sets between March 31 and April 2.
The CBI has also claimed that accused Manisha Gurunath Mandhare (A-1), who handled English-to-Marathi translation for Botany and back-translation for Zoology, used her familiarity with NCERT textbooks to reconstruct leaked questions.
“During investigation, it has been revealed that accused Manisha Gurunath Mandhare (A-1)… after finishing her work for the day and returning to the hotel room, she would mark the relevant paragraphs in the NCERT textbooks. Due to her decades of experience with the same material, she was easily able to correlate the questions with the NCERT textbook material,” the chargesheet said.
The third NTA expert, Manisha Sanjay Havaldar (A-3), who was entrusted with translation, back-translation and proofreading work for Physics, allegedly noted down questions after returning to her accommodation in Delhi.
“Investigation has revealed that accused Manisha Sanjay Havaldar (A-3) used to note down the questions in brief after returning to her stay in Delhi at the end of the day’s work,” the chargesheet stated.
The CBI has also flagged major security deficiencies in the NTA’s confidential section.
According to the chargesheet, the NTA office is located on the first and fifth floors of the NSIC building in Okhla, with the confidential section occupying an entire wing of the first floor. However, only 20-25 days of CCTV footage was available at the NTA.
“As regards CCTV monitoring at NTA, back-up of only 20-25 days was found. Since confidential section-related work of NEET UG 2026 exam was completed on 07.04.2026 and the instant case was registered on 12.05.2026, no CCTV footage of relevant period was available for investigation purposes,” the chargesheet said.
The CBI further said there was “no dedicated CCTV live feed monitoring control room in NTA”, as a result of which the activities of experts inside the confidential hall went unnoticed.
The revelations form part of the chargesheet filed by the CBI against all 13 arrested accused in the NEET-UG 2026 question paper leak case.
The agency has cited 360 witnesses, 422 documents and 43 material objects in the chargesheet.
The 13 accused include three NTA subject experts of Chemistry, Biology and Physics, besides alleged middlemen and others involved in the circulation of the leaked questions.
The CBI had registered the case on May 12 following a written complaint from the Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Education, regarding irregularities and allegations of a question paper leak in the NEET-UG 2026 examination held on May 3.
The probe agency said it immediately constituted multiple teams comprising 72 officers/personnel and eight cyber forensic experts.
Searches were conducted at 92 locations in Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Haryana, Delhi and other states, leading to the seizure of digital and communication devices, documents and other incriminating material.
The CBI has claimed that its investigation traced the chain from the source of the leakage to beneficiary candidates, with several middlemen and individuals associated with coaching institutes also arrested.
The original NEET-UG 2026 examination was subsequently cancelled, and a re-examination was conducted on June 21 under heightened security arrangements.
All 13 chargesheeted accused are presently in judicial custody.
The accused have been chargesheeted under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, and the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024.
(IANS)
