New Delhi: The probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the NEET UG 2026 paper leak case revealed an interstate nexus between the accused. The CBI on Wednesday arrested six accused in connection with the case. Among these accused, three were taken into custody from Rajasthan’s Jaipur, two from Maharashtra’s Nashik and Ahilyanagar and one from Haryana’s Gurugram. During the CBI investigation, Dhananjay Lokhande, who was arrested from Ahilyanagar, is emerging as one of the key masterminds in the NEET UG paper leak case.
In exclusive information accessed by Times Now, investigators have found that he was allegedly running a network through agents in different cities to sell the NEET question paper to aspiring candidates.
According to the probe, Lokhande had roped in several students as middlemen to identify candidates willing to pay for the leaked paper. Among them was Manisha Waghmare, who runs a beauty parlour in Pune and is suspected to have worked as an agent for the racket.
After questioning Manisha, a woman from Pune, the police have now detained another student, Seshrao Solanki, from the Fursungi area of the city. Solanki was reportedly studying cybersecurity-related engineering at a reputed institute in Pune. Investigators suspect that Lokhande had assigned him the task of finding students interested in buying the NEET paper and collecting money from them.
During the investigation, officials came across mobile phone conversations that allegedly revealed that four days before the NEET exam, Solanki had informed some students in his contact that the question paper would be made available to them.
Also Read: NEET UG Paper Leak: 30 Minutes of Access, 120 Questions Stolen, Multiple States Nexus
Police have also found that Manisha Waghmare had been in touch with Lokhande for nearly three years. She too is suspected to have identified and connected students who were willing to purchase the leaked paper. Sources claimed that Lokhande was allegedly operating the entire network from Pune’s Wagholi area.
Names of Six Accused Arrested So Far:
- Shubham Khairnar from Nashik
- Yash Yadav from Gurugram
- Mangilal Biwal from Jaipur
- Vikas Biwal from Jaipur
- Dinesh Biwal from Jaipur
- Dhanjay Lokhande from Ahilyanagar
What CBI Said In The Court:
On Thursday, the CBI presented five accused, except, Lokhande in court. The probe agency said that the FIR was registered under sections of BNS, PC Act, and the Public Examination Unfair Means Act. It was registered on the complaint of the Centre. The CBI submitted that the NEET UG exam was compromised due to the circulation of a paper the questions of which matched the actual examination.
The CBI said that in April Shubham informed Yash that Mangilal had approached him. Shubham then gave the leaked question papers to Yash Yadav. Yadav also asked his friend Yash Kakkar to collect educational certificates. The CBI alleged that they merged the questions with other questions.
The probe agency told the court that it had gone through the WhatsApp and Telegram chats where there were around 100 questions enabling people to score about 600 marks, which is sufficient to obtain marks for Government colleges. The probe agency said that the NEET UG paper was recovered from Mangilal. During the investigation, Vikas revealed that he came in contact with Yash Yadav while doing coaching in Sikar. Vikas shared details of various students with Yash Yadav.
The probe agency further said that incriminating evidence was deleted.
What Was Said In Complaint:
The CBI filed an FIR on the basis of a complaint. It said the NTA exam was compromised due to WhatsApp because some question paper matched the exam conducted by the agency. The CBI revealed that on April 26 Shubman informed Yash that Mangilal approached him for his son around Rs 26 lakh. Yash then collected documents. There were 500-600 questions. The accused then mixed both original and other questions. They even assured that the candidate will get admission in government colleges.
Mangilal assured he would give Rs 10 lakh. Meanwhile, Vikas Biwal, during NEET coaching centre met Yash, who assured him that he would arrange question papers. The PDF of the question papers was printed and distributed.
