NEET UG 2026 paper leak: 30-yr-old detained, CBI takes custody

The accused allegedly paid Rs 10 lakh and then resold it online for Rs 15 lakh to another buyer from Haryana.

Nashik: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Tuesday, May 12, took into its custody a 30-year-old student from Nashik in Maharashtra in connection with the alleged NEET UG 2026 paper leak, an official said.

Earlier in the day, crime branch unit 2 of the Nashik Police detained Shubham Khairnar, a Bachelor of Ayurvedic Medicine and Surgery (BAMS) from Nandgaon.

He allegedly paid Rs 10 lakh for the leaked paper and then sold it online for Rs 15 lakh to another buyer from Haryana, India Today reported.

The transaction and delivery of the leaked paper were allegedly conducted via an unknown encrypted messenger app. 

Shubam Khairnar was picked up while on his way to a temple. Police say he cut his hair to avoid coming under police radar.

CBI is tracking the digital trail left by the messenger app to identify the original source of the leak.

The National Testing Agency (NTA) on Tuesday cancelled the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (Undergraduate), or NEET, held on May 3 for medical admissions amid allegations of paper leak, with the government asking the CBI to carry out a comprehensive inquiry into the “irregularities”.

Director General, Abhishek Singh said the schedule for the re-examination would be announced within the “next seven to 10 days”.

(With PTI inputs)