A Delhi court on Sunday, 17 May remanded Manisha Gurunath Mandhare, an accused in the NEET-UG 2026 paper leak case, to 14-day Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) custody. Mandhare, a senior Botany teacher from Pune appointed by the National Testing Agency (NTA), is suspected to be the co-mastermind behind the leak of the Biology question paper.

Who Is Manisha Mandhare

Mandhare was engaged by the NTA as an expert for the NEET-UG 2026 examination process, giving her complete access to the Biology question paper. The CBI told the Rouse Avenue Court that she was an expert in translating botany and zoology question papers. Chemistry professor P.V. Kulkarni is being considered the 'kingpin' of the broader paper leak conspiracy.

What the CBI Told the Court

The agency stated that Mandhare was in active conspiracy with P.V. Kulkarni and Manisha Waghmare, who was arrested on 14 May. 'Manisha was in conspiracy with P.V. Kulkarni and Manisha Waghmare. She gave the question paper to another accused, Shubham. Simultaneous investigations are going on across the country. We need to take her to different parts of the country for the purpose of investigation,' the CBI told the court.

According to the CBI, in April 2026, Mandhare mobilised prospective NEET candidates through Pune consultant Manisha Waghmare and conducted special coaching classes at her Pune residence. During these sessions, she allegedly explained and disclosed questions from Biology, directing students to note them in notebooks and mark them in textbooks. A majority of those questions reportedly tallied with the actual NEET-UG 2026 paper administered on 3 May 2026 — an examination that was subsequently cancelled.

Defence Raises Arrest Procedure Concerns

The defence counsel challenged the legality of Mandhare's arrest, stating she was detained after sundown and transported to Delhi at 1 am. 'She was arrested after sundown and then was brought to Delhi at 1 a.m.,' the defence counsel said. The court directed the defence to file a formal application on the matter. The court also allowed Mandhare to meet her legal counsel daily for 15 minutes.

Scale of the Investigation

The CBI registered this case on 12 May 2026 following a written complaint from the Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Education, Government of India. In the 24 hours preceding Sunday's hearing, CBI teams conducted searches at six locations across the country, seizing incriminating documents, laptops, bank statements, and mobile phones.

So far, nine accused have been arrested from Delhi, Jaipur, Gurugram, Nashik, Pune, and Ahmednagar. Five of them have already been produced before a court and placed under 7-day police custody remand. Two others arrested on Friday were produced before a court in Pune and subsequently shifted to Delhi on transit remand. The CBI has stated that investigations have so far identified the actual source of the Chemistry and Biology paper leaks, as well as the middlemen who charged students lakhs of rupees to attend coaching sessions where exam questions were dictated. The probe is continuing, with special teams operating simultaneously across multiple states.