NEET-UG paper leak: Why CBI may not name NTA officials in final charge sheet
So far the CBI probe has only been able to establish the role of 13 individuals including NTA-appointed subject experts, coaching centre operators and middlemen
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is nearing the conclusion of its investigation into the NEET UG 2026 paper leak, with a final charge sheet anticipated within the week. Reports suggest that the charge sheet will likely not implicate any officials from the Centre or the National Testing Agency (NTA), as the probe has thus far identified the roles of 13 private individuals, including subject experts, coaching center operators, middlemen, and candidates. The NEET 2026 exam was cancelled on May 12 due to a leak involving 120 questions from a guess paper, a decision that triggered widespread protests and led to the resignation of the Union Education Minister. In response to the scandal, the education ministry took measures such as removing NTA staff and enhancing the examination's question-paper scrutiny system.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is nearing the conclusion of its investigation into the NEET UG 2026 paper leak, with a final charge sheet anticipated within the week. Reports suggest that the charge sheet will likely not implicate any officials from the Centre or the National Testing Agency (NTA), as the probe has thus far identified the roles of 13 private individuals, including subject experts, coaching center operators, middlemen, and candidates. The NEET 2026 exam was cancelled on May 12 due to a leak involving 120 questions from a guess paper, a decision that triggered widespread protests and led to the resignation of the Union Education Minister. In response to the scandal, the education ministry took measures such as removing NTA staff and enhancing the examination's question-paper scrutiny system.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is nearing the conclusion of its investigation into the NEET UG 2026 paper leak, with a final charge sheet anticipated within the week. Reports suggest that the charge sheet will likely not implicate any officials from the Centre or the National Testing Agency (NTA), as the probe has thus far identified the roles of 13 private individuals, including subject experts, coaching center operators, middlemen, and candidates. The NEET 2026 exam was cancelled on May 12 due to a leak involving 120 questions from a guess paper, a decision that triggered widespread protests and led to the resignation of the Union Education Minister. In response to the scandal, the education ministry took measures such as removing NTA staff and enhancing the examination's question-paper scrutiny system.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is set to file its final charge sheet in the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test-UG 2026 paper leak case within a week. As they gear up to submit the final charge sheet, reports say that it is unlikely to name any official from the Centre or the National Testing Agency.
So far the CBI probe has only been able to establish the role of 13 individuals - including NTA-appointed subject experts, coaching centre operators, middlemen and candidates.
While quoting an officer, Hindustan Times reported that the agency will not implicate any government official, including NTA officials, as the probe into the leak did not establish anyone else's role beyond private individuals.
On May 12, NTA announced the cancellation of the 2026 NEET test after 120 questions in a guess paper were found to be common with the NEET exam paper on May 3. The guess paper is a compilation made by subject experts and teachers of suggested questions depending on early trends and patterns.
The paper leak triggered massive protests in Parliament and eventually led to the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan after the Cockroach Janta Party called for protests on the streets.
Shashank Maurya, who appeared for the retest on June 21, said that the NEET paper leak couldn't have happened without the involvement of NTA and education ministry officials.
The first charge sheet in the paper leak was filed on July 28, naming 13 accused persons, including three NTA-appointed subject experts.
CBI said then that it kept open the probe into the role of “other conspirators” to submit the experts’ opinion reports from the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL), Government Examiner of Questioned Documents (GEQD) and Delhi University experts.
Following paper leak allegations, the Union Education Ministry removed 50 NTA personnel on August 17 as part of a sweeping overhaul. The testing agency subsequently revamped its examination team by replacing 600 subject experts and instituting a four-tier question-paper review process.