Security lapses at NTA enabled NEET-UG question leaks, says CBI chargesheet

Serious security gaps at the National Testing Agency (NTA), including the absence of frisking and inadequate CCTV surveillance, allegedly allowed three subject experts to extract confidential questions ahead of the NEET-UG 2026 examination, according to a CBI chargesheet.

The Central Bureau of Investigation has alleged that the three experts, who were engaged for translation, back-translation and proofreading of examination material, obtained questions from Chemistry, Biology and Physics before the medical entrance examination was held on 3 May.

The chargesheet, filed before Delhi's Rouse Avenue Court, details different methods allegedly used by the accused to remove or reconstruct questions after accessing them inside the NTA's confidential section.

According to the CBI, accused P.V. Kulkarni, who was involved in back-translating Chemistry papers, allegedly copied questions and answer choices on to small pieces of paper before concealing them and carrying them out of the restricted area.

Investigators alleged that Kulkarni used plain sheets supplied to experts for rough work to make brief notes of all 135 Chemistry questions along with their answer options.

The agency claimed this was possible because experts entering and leaving the confidential section were not routinely frisked or checked.

For questions that were easier to recall, Kulkarni allegedly relied on memory and wrote them down after returning to his hotel. The CBI said he worked on the back-translation of three Chemistry question sets between 31 March and 2 April.

Another accused, Manisha Gurunath Mandhare, was responsible for English-to-Marathi translation of Botany material and back-translation work for Zoology, according to the chargesheet.

Investigators alleged that Mandhare used her extensive familiarity with NCERT textbooks to reconstruct questions she had encountered during her work.

After returning to her hotel at the end of the day, she allegedly identified and marked passages in NCERT textbooks corresponding to the questions she remembered. The agency said her decades of experience with the material enabled her to link the questions with relevant portions of the textbooks.

The third subject expert, Manisha Sanjay Havaldar, was assigned translation, back-translation and proofreading work for Physics. She allegedly memorised questions and recorded them in abbreviated form after returning to her accommodation in Delhi.

The chargesheet has also raised questions about surveillance arrangements at the NTA's Delhi office.

According to the CBI, the NTA operates from the first and fifth floors of the NSIC building in Okhla, with its confidential section occupying an entire wing on the first floor.

Investigators found that only about 20 to 25 days of CCTV recordings were retained.

Work relating to confidential NEET-UG 2026 material was completed on 7 April, while the CBI registered its case on 12 May. Consequently, footage covering the period when the alleged extraction of questions took place was no longer available when investigators sought it, the agency said.

The CBI further alleged that the NTA did not have a dedicated control room for live monitoring of CCTV cameras in the confidential section. This meant the activities of experts working inside the restricted area were not being continuously observed, according to the chargesheet.

The findings form part of the CBI's chargesheet against 13 people arrested in connection with the alleged NEET-UG 2026 question paper leak.

Apart from the three NTA subject experts, those accused include alleged intermediaries and others suspected of helping circulate the questions.

The CBI has cited 360 witnesses, 422 documents and 43 material objects in support of its case.

The agency registered the case on 12 May following a written complaint from the Department of Higher Education under the Ministry of Education concerning alleged irregularities and leakage of questions in the 3 May examination.

The CBI subsequently constituted several investigation teams involving 72 officers and personnel as well as eight cyber-forensic experts.

Searches were carried out at 92 locations across Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Haryana, Delhi and other parts of the country. Investigators seized digital and communication devices, documents and other material during the operation.

The agency claims its investigation reconstructed the alleged network from those responsible for the initial leak to candidates who ultimately benefited from the compromised questions. Several alleged middlemen and people associated with coaching institutes were also arrested during the investigation.

The original NEET-UG 2026 examination was subsequently cancelled and a fresh examination was conducted on 21 June under tighter security measures.

All 13 people named in the chargesheet are currently in judicial custody. They have been charged under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, and the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024.

With IANS inputs