New Delhi: The question paper of the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET (UG) 2026 was allegedly leaked from within the National Testing Agency (NTA), according to the probe conducted by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
The federal agency has found that Pune-based Dhananjay Lokhande received the leaked question paper from his “source” within the examination conducting body.
Originally from Maharashtra’s Ahilyangar district, Lokhande has been based in Pune for the last few years. The CBI arrested Lokhande, who runs a career counselling firm in Pune, along with his agent Manisha Waghmare, and made seven arrests after launching a probe Tuesday.
According to the CBI’s findings, Lokhande received the leaked question paper on 28 April, a day before he passed on the question paper to Nashik resident Shubham Khairnar, who has been identified as a pointperson in the leak and circulation of the NEET UG 2026 question paper.
“It is further submitted that the accused Shubham Khairnar facilitated the distribution of the leaked NEET UG 2026 question to Yash Yadav of Gurgaon. Shubham obtained the said paper on 28.04.2026 from another person in Pune, who obtained it from his alleged NTA source,” the CBI submitted before a special CBI court in Delhi, Thursday.
NTA director general Abhishek Singh told ThePrint that he was not aware of the CBI findings in the case.
“We are working with the CBI to ensure an impartial enquiry into the matter and will get the harshest punishment to whoever is responsible for the situation that has led to cancellation of the examination. The NTA has taken the matter very seriously and has reviewed all its internal systems and processes,” Singh added.
Formed as an autonomous and self-sustaining testing organisation in 2018 to bring “qualitative difference”, the NTA and its limitations have repeatedly come under scrutiny for a series of lapses in conducting examinations, such as NEET.
There have been calls and petitions before the courts to disband the body in the wake of this year’s examination leak and lapses during the NEET UG 2024 examination. In 2024, the CBI had given clean chits to NTA officials and office-bearers in contrast to its findings this year.
Sources in the Rajasthan Special Operation Group (SOG) had also indicated a “strong possibility” of a leak of the question papers by “someone within the body.”
“The accuracy of the guess paper, including placement of the questions as well as the answer options, was too accurate for someone from the outside of the system to have cracked it,” a Rajasthan Police officer had told ThePrint.
Earlier on Thursday, the CBI secured custody of five accused arrested in the first phase of the probe. It allegedly found that Khairnar sent the question paper to Gurugram-based career counsellor Yash Yadav via Telegram as part of his plan to leak the document to Mangilal Biwal, who had approached Khairnar for questions last month.
“In April, Khairnar informed Yash Yadav that Mangilal had reached out to him for arranging the leaked question papers for his younger son, for Rs 12 lakh. Shubham allegedly offered leaked question papers on 29 April,” the CBI counsel informed the court Thursday.
(Edited by Tony Rai)
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