CBI arrests Pune Botany teacher alleged to be key conspirator in NEET-UG paper leak

The Central Bureau of Investigation on Saturday arrested a Pune-based Botany professor accused of leaking Biology questions from the 2026 NEET-UG exam while serving on the paper-setting panel of the National Testing Agency (NTA), officials said.

The accused, Manisha Mandhare, was taken into custody in Delhi after extensive questioning at the CBI headquarters. The agency has described her as “another mastermind” in the alleged paper leak conspiracy and claimed she was the source of leaked Biology questions.

Mandhare’s arrest came following the interrogation of alleged kingpin PV Kulkarni and other accused already held in the case. Kulkarni, a former Chemistry professor who had also reportedly worked on NEET paper-setting panels for years, was arrested by the CBI on Friday.

According to investigators, Mandhare teaches at Modern College of Arts Science and Commerce and had been associated with NEET paper-setting work for nearly five to six years. Officials alleged that she was appointed as an expert by the NTA and had access to confidential Botany and Zoology question papers prepared for the May 3 examination.

The CBI claimed Mandhare leaked questions to select NEET aspirants through secret coaching classes organised at her residence in Pune during April 2026. During these sessions, she allegedly dictated questions and answers to students, asked them to note the material in notebooks and textbooks, and charged lakhs of rupees in return.

Investigators said many of the questions discussed in those sessions closely matched the ones that later appeared in the examination.

The agency further alleged that aspirants attending the special coaching classes were mobilised with the help of Manisha Wagmare, who was arrested earlier this week. Officials claimed Wagmare played a key role in connecting candidates with the accused professors.

The alleged modus operandi used by Mandhare was similar to that attributed to Kulkarni, according to the CBI. Investigators said Kulkarni too conducted private coaching sessions at his Pune residence to leak Chemistry questions to selected students.

Kulkarni and Wagmare were produced before a Delhi court on Saturday, where the CBI sought 14 days of custody to probe the wider conspiracy and examine possible links across multiple cities.

So far, nine people have been arrested in the case from different parts of the country, including Pune, Delhi, Jaipur and Gurugram, officials said.