Pune, May 27 (IANS): The Central Bureau of Investigation has arrested two more accused in the NEET-UG 2026 paper leak case, taking the total number of arrests to 13, officials said on Wednesday. The two newly arrested accused have been identified as Dr Manoj Shirure, a Latur-based doctor, and Tejas Harshadkumar Shah, a physics faculty member at Abhang Prabhu Medical Academy, a Pune-based coaching centre. According to officials, Shirure played a key role in facilitating three students, including the son of an accused coaching centre owner, in obtaining Chemistry questions from P.V. Kulkarni, who is being called the kingpin of the entire paper leak scam. Meanwhile, Tejas Harshadkumar Shah obtained the leaked Physics questions of the NEET-UG 2026 exam from arrested accused Manisha Havaldar. The CBI registered the case on May 12 based on a written complaint from the Ministry of Education’s Department of Higher Education pertaining to the alleged paper leak, following which special teams were formed and searches conducted at various locations across the country.
The CBI has so far conducted searches at 49 locations across the country and seized several incriminating documents, laptops and mobile phones, with detailed analysis of the seized items currently underway. The 13 accused arrested in the case are from Delhi, Jaipur, Gurugram, Nashik, Pune, Latur and Ahliyanagar, reflecting the wide geographic spread of the alleged conspiracy. Investigators said the probe has brought out the actual source of the leakage of Chemistry, Biology and Physics questions that were circulated before the exam, with various special teams working in tandem to unearth the full chain of the conspiracy. The CBI reaffirmed its commitment to a comprehensive, impartial and professional investigation in the case, with further details awaited as investigations continue.