The CBI says Latur-based coaching centre owner Shivraj Raghunath Motegaonkar was arrested in connection with the NEET-UG 2026 paper leak and allegedly paid ₹5 lakh to procure leaked chemistry questions. According to the CBI, Motegaonkar allegedly conspired with co-accused individuals to obtain the leaked questions from P. V. Kulkarni, who was on the National Testing Agency (NTA) panel involved in setting the exam questions.
CBI claims that leaked chemistry questions were shared through coaching-related interactions and that Motegaonkar prepared handwritten notes based on the material he allegedly received. The agency also says it recovered Motegaonkar’s phone, which contained multiple images of handwritten chemistry questions, and that analysis found a large portion of those questions allegedly matching the NTA’s master question sets for NEET-UG 2026. The CBI further states that metadata indicates the images were captured about 10 days before the exam date.
Both reports note that the probe is expanding beyond the initial suspects, with 13 people arrested and currently in judicial custody. NEET-UG held on May 3 was cancelled by the NTA amid leak allegations and a re-exam was conducted on June 21.