- A black Hyundai Verna carrying leaked NEET-UG 2026 question sets was intercepted in Rajasthan on April 30
- The NEET-UG 2026 exam was cancelled after leaks, and a re-exam was held on June 21 for two million students
- CBI chargesheet names NTA experts and middlemen for leaking questions via notes and NCERT markings
A black Hyundai Verna pulled up on the Jhunjhunu bypass in Rajasthan carrying what the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has alleged were 11 printed sets containing leaked questions of the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET-UG 2026) on April 30, four days before the medical college entrance examination was scheduled for millions of students. Waiting to receive them was Amit Kumar Meena, who investigators said had allegedly travelled there after being told the paper could be procured through contacts in Rajasthan's coaching hub of Sikar.
The NEET-UG 2026 was held on May 3 for about two million students but was later cancelled following allegations that the question paper was leaked in advance. A re-examination was then conducted on June 21.
According to the chargesheet by the CBI in the case, Mangilal Biwal and Dinesh Biwal - the family from Sikar at the centre of the paper leak - arrived in Verna and handed over printed sets covering all three subjects - Physics, Chemistry, and Biology.
Instead of paying immediately, Amit Kumar Meena allegedly deposited the original Class X and XII marksheets of four candidates as security. The accused allegedly assured him that payment would be required only if more than 150 questions matched the actual examination. Before the handover, Amit Kumar Meena's friend, Rohit Mawaliya, is alleged to have collected the candidates' original marksheets from flat of Dinesh Biwal's son, Rishi Biwal, in Sikar.
The CBI said this exchange was one of the final physical links in a conspiracy that allegedly began weeks earlier inside the National Testing Agency (NTA), the government agency that conducts the NEET.
"During investigation, Amit Kumar Meena stated that he met Rishi Biwal while preparing for the NEET at Sikar. He stated that Rishi Biwal asked him to arrange Rs 10-12 lakh to obtain the NEET-UG 2026 question paper. Rishi Biwal offered to give him the questions for free, if he arranges 10-12 candidates. Due to his poor financial situation, he requested his friend Rohit Mawaliya to help him arrange candidates," the chargesheet noted.
Rishi, however, scored only 107 out of 720 in the NEET.
The paper leak first came to light after Shashikant Suthar, a chemistry teacher from Sikar, noticed that a "guess paper" circulating among students closely matched the actual question paper. Suthar alerted the NTA by email and also approached the Rajasthan Police, alleging that the paper was being sold for Rs 10-25 lakh across several states.
Following the Rajasthan Police Special Operations Group's (SOG) probe, the Union Ministry of Education lodged a complaint, based on which the CBI registered a case on May 12. The CBI subsequently constituted Special Investigation Teams and uncovered a multi-state conspiracy involving NTA subject experts, middlemen, and beneficiary candidates, culminating in a chargesheet against 13 accused.
How NEET-UG Leak Began
According to the chargesheet, the conspiracy began during the confidential question-setting and translation process for NEET-UG 2026. The CBI alleged that subject experts PV Kulkarni, Manisha Mandhare and Manisha Havaldar, who had access to different sections of the examination paper, leaked questions - through chits, marking NCERT paragraphs and memorising.
Investigators allege that Kulkarni, who carried out back-translation for three sets comprising 135 questions, memorised easier questions while working inside the confidential section and later wrote them down after returning to his hotel.
The CBI said experts entering and leaving the confidential section were not frisked, making such an act possible.
For more difficult questions, the chargesheet alleged Kulkarni wrote short handwritten notes or "chits" that could later be reconstructed.
Another accused expert, Manisha Mandhare, allegedly referred to NCERT textbooks while translating botany questions, marking relevant paragraphs that corresponded to confidential questions, allowing the material to be recreated later.
Along with another accused, Manisha Havaldar, the experts allegedly reconstructed the leaked question paper over several days.
The CBI alleged the reconstructed questions were subsequently circulated through several intermediaries, with investigators tracing their spread across Rajasthan and Kerala. The agency has charged 13 accused so far in the case.
Kerala Trail
One branch of the investigation led to a hostel in Mount Zion Medical College in Adoor, Kerala. According to the chargesheet, first-year MBBS student Hitesh Kumar allegedly received the leaked NEET-UG question paper PDFs from his roommate, Lakshay Raj, a resident of Jhunjhunu and a former Allen Coaching student in Sikar. The CBI alleged that Lakshay later deleted the chats through which he had received the leaked PDFs.
Investigators found that Lakshay was acquainted with Rajat Choudhary, his former classmate at Allen Coaching Institute. Rajat's younger brother, Rishabh Choudhary, was appearing for NEET-UG 2026. At around 10 pm on May 2, Rajat allegedly received a call from Abhishek Saini, who contacted him through the reference of Sachin Dhangar, Lakshay Raj's cousin. According to the chargesheet, Abhishek claimed he possessed the leaked NEET-UG paper and demanded Rs 40,000 for sharing it.
Acting on his instructions, Rajat allegedly transferred Rs 30,000 to Lakshay Raj through a PhonePe transaction linked to Lakshay's Rajasthan Gramin Bank account. About an hour later, Rishabh allegedly received nearly 450 solved question-and-answer PDFs from his brother, just hours before the examination.
The Sikar Network
The investigation also uncovered a parallel distribution network centred around Sikar.
According to the chargesheet, Rakesh Mandawariya, owner of RK Educational Consultancy, told investigators that Nitesh Choudhary approached him on April 30, claiming he could arrange the NEET-UG paper for money. On May 2, Nitesh allegedly returned with two PDF files containing nearly 500 questions. After an attempted Bluetooth/pen drive transfer failed, the files were received on the consultancy's office computer through WhatsApp.
The CBI said Abhishek Saini, an employee at the consultancy, later forwarded the PDFs to a student at the direction of a colleague, Jitendra Kumar. Although instructed to delete the files, investigators alleged he instead forwarded them to Sachin Dhangar, linking the Sikar network to Kerala.
The chargesheet also alleged that Amit Kumar Meena met Rishi Biwal, who agreed to arrange the NEET-UG paper if enough candidates were brought together. On April 29, Rishi allegedly shared soft copies of the questions and answers through Telegram and told Amit that printed copies would be delivered the following day.
Separately, Rahul Punia and Ranjit Saini allegedly approached Rohit Mawaliya on May 1 seeking study material. On Rohit's instructions, they allegedly went to a house in Jajod-Tikiriya village.
"Total six of them were there and they were provided hard copies of question answer sets of Physics, Chemistry and Biology containing about 500 questions by Praveen (cousin of Rohit Mawaliya). They remained there till 1300 hrs on 02.05.2026," the chargesheet said.
