- Beautician allegedly linked students to educators for paper leaks.
- NTA expert accused of leaking NEET papers for money.
- Accused allegedly charged students ₹10 lakh each for leaks.
- CBI suspects a larger organized network behind leak.
A 46-year-old beautician from Pune has allegedly emerged as a crucial link in the CBI investigation into the NEET-UG paper leak case. According to sources, she allegedly connected students searching for tuition teachers with educators from reputed schools and later used those contacts to circulate the leaked examination paper, which eventually led to the cancellation of the exam.
The accused, identified as Manisha Waghmare, runs a beauty parlour in Pune’s Sukhsagar Nagar area. She was arrested on May 14 along with retired teacher P V Kulkarni. Both were sent to 10 days of CBI custody beginning May 16.
Meanwhile, a Delhi court on Sunday granted the agency 14-day custody of another accused, Manisha Gurunath Mandhare (57), who was allegedly part of the National Testing Agency’s (NTA) question-setting panel for NEET-UG 2026. Investigators have described her as one of the alleged masterminds behind the leak.
NTA Expert Allegedly Leaked Question Papers For Money
While seeking custody of Mandhare, the CBI told the court that she had allegedly leaked exam papers to selected candidates in return for large sums of money.
According to investigators, Mandhare, who was arrested in Pune on May 15, had full access to the Botany and Zoology question papers as part of her role with the NTA panel.
The agency alleged that she conspired with co-accused Manisha Waghmare and Prahlad Vittal Rao Kulkarni and shared examination-related content with select students for financial gain.
CBI officials claimed that after learning about Mandhare’s involvement in setting the question paper, Waghmare allegedly devised a plan with her to sell the leaked papers to students willing to pay.
Students Allegedly Charged Around ₹10 Lakh Each
Sources said investigators found that Waghmare was already in contact with several students because many had approached her for tuition-related assistance.
She allegedly struck deals worth nearly ₹10 lakh per student. Of this amount, around ₹2.5 lakh to ₹3 lakh was allegedly to be shared among Waghmare, Mandhare, and Kulkarni.
Investigators believe Waghmare arranged four to five students and later discussed the plan with an old friend, Dhananjay Nivrutti Lokhande. Lokhande then allegedly contacted Shubham Khairnar, who operated a counselling business in Nashik.
Khairnar became the first accused to be arrested, just hours after the NEET-UG exam was cancelled last Tuesday.
According to sources, Lokhande allegedly received the leaked NEET paper from Waghmare and passed it to Khairnar, who then circulated PDF copies to Gurugram resident Yash Yadav and others in Jaipur. Yadav has also been arrested in connection with the case.
CBI Suspects Larger Conspiracy
During Sunday’s hearing, the CBI told the court that the investigation was still at an early but crucial stage and hinted at the possibility of a wider organised network behind the paper leak.
The agency said more accused are yet to be identified and arrested, and custodial interrogation is necessary to uncover the full conspiracy and recover additional evidence linked to the racket.
