The Central Bureau of Investigation has arrested a chemistry teacher from Maharashtra, identified as the alleged “kingpin” behind the NEET-UG 2026 paper leak, officials said on Friday.
The accused, PV Kulkarni, originally from Latur and arrested in Pune, allegedly had links with the National Testing Agency and was involved in the medical entrance examination process, giving him access to confidential question papers.
According to investigators, Kulkarni mobilised students in late April with the help of another accused, Manisha Waghmare, and conducted special coaching sessions at his Pune residence ahead of the exam held on May 3.
During these classes, he allegedly dictated questions, answer options and correct responses from the chemistry section of the paper. Students attending the sessions wrote the details by hand in notebooks, which investigators later found “exactly tallied” with the actual NEET-UG 2026 question paper.
The examination, taken by more than 22 lakh students across the country, was subsequently cancelled amid allegations of a leak and will now be reconducted on June 21.
Also read: NEET-UG 2026 re-exam to be held on June 2
The CBI said the investigation gathered momentum after searches were conducted at multiple locations across the country. Officials seized incriminating documents, electronic devices and mobile phones, which are now undergoing forensic and technical analysis.
The agency registered the case on May 12 following a complaint from the Union Education Ministry and formed special teams to investigate the leak.
By May 14, seven accused had been arrested from Jaipur, Gurugram, Nashik, Pune and Ahilyanagar. Five of them have already been remanded to seven days of CBI custody for detailed interrogation.
The remaining two accused arrested on Thursday are being produced before a Pune court for transit remand to Delhi.
The agency said the probe had so far uncovered the “actual source” of the chemistry paper leak and exposed middlemen who allegedly collected several lakh rupees from students for access to the leaked question bank.
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