CBI Arrests one More Accused in NEET-UG 2026 Case, Teacher Working with Seth Hiralal Saraf Prashala of Pune Held Over Physics Paper Leak

Pune, 22nd May 2026: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested one more accused, a Pune-based school teacher in connection with the alleged leak of Physics questions in the NEET-UG 2026 examination paper leak case, officials said on Friday.

The accused, identified as Manisha Sanjay Havaldar, is currently employed at Seth Hiralal Saraf Prashala in Pune and was appointed by the National Testing Agency (NTA) as a subject expert for the examination process, the agency said.

According to the CBI, Havaldar had access to the Physics question papers and allegedly shared several questions with co-accused Manisha Mandhare, who was arrested earlier on May 16. The agency claimed that the leaked questions matched those that appeared in the Physics section of various NEET-UG 2026 paper sets.

Officials said Havaldar was arrested after detailed interrogation as part of the ongoing probe into the alleged paper leak.

The CBI said it has conducted searches at multiple locations across the country and seized laptops, mobile phones, bank statements and other incriminating documents. Analysis of the seized material is underway.

The agency had registered the case on May 12 based on a complaint filed by the Department of Higher Education under the Union Ministry of Education regarding the alleged leak of the NEET-UG 2026 examination paper.

Since then, special investigation teams have carried out raids and questioned several suspects across different states.

So far, 11 accused have been arrested from Delhi, Jaipur, Gurugram, Nashik, Pune, Latur and Ahilyanagar in connection with the case.

The CBI said its investigation has identified the alleged source of the paper leak and uncovered a network of middlemen who allegedly mobilised students by charging lakhs of rupees for “special coaching classes” where questions expected to appear in the examination were shared.

The agency said further investigation is underway.