GUWAHAT: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Saturday, May 16, arrested a senior Botany teacher from Pune in connection with the NEET-UG Biology question paper leak case, taking the total number of arrests in the case to nine.
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The accused, Manisha Gurunath Mandhare, was appointed as an expert by the National Testing Agency (NTA) and is alleged to have had access to Botany and Zoology question papers, the CBI said. She is accused of mobilising NEET aspirants through co-accused Manisha Waghmare, arrested on November 14, and conducting specialised coaching sessions at her Pune residence for selected candidates.
With her arrest, nine persons have now been held from Delhi, Jaipur, Gurugram, Nashik, Pune and Ahilyanagar. Among the other key accused are Dhananjay Lokhande of Ahilyanagar and P.V. Kulkarni, a Chemistry lecturer from Pune, who was also associated with the NTA examination process and allegedly had access to question papers.
Of the nine accused, five have been produced before the court and remanded to police custody for interrogation. Two others were produced before a Pune court and subsequently shifted to Delhi on transit remand.
The CBI also carried out searches at six locations across the country and seized incriminating documents, laptops, bank statements and mobile phones linked to the case.
Further investigation is underway.
