NEET-UG paper leak case: Maharashtra school suspends arrested teacher, vows support to CBI probe

PIMPRI CHINCHWAD (Pune): Seth Hiralal Saraswati Prashala has placed its long-serving senior Physics lecturer, Manisha Sanjay Havaldar, under immediate suspension following her arrest for alleged involvement in the high-profile NEET-UG paper leak case.

Dr Satish Gawli, Secretary of Seth Hiralal Saraswati Prashala, termed the teacher’s alleged actions a “betrayal” of students, the institution, and the country, adding that a high-level internal inquiry committee has been set up to probe the matter.

Dr Satish Gawli said, “As soon as we came to know that Manisha Havaldar, who works in our school, was arrested for the NEET exam… We immediately suspended her and appointed an inquiry committee. We absolutely do not support this; we are determined to take action because this is tampering with the children’s future.”

Emphasising that the school has maintained an unblemished record until now, Dr Gawli added, “No such incident has occurred in our school or college before, and there was no such teacher either. But when we heard about this Havaldar Madam, that she had done such a thing, we felt it was a huge tragedy.”

The school administration further stated that it has extended its complete cooperation to the central agency handling the multi-state paper leak investigation. “We will 100 per cent support a CBI inquiry, because this is a betrayal of the children, a betrayal of our institution, a betrayal of society, and she is a traitor to our country,” Dr Gawli said.

However, the Secretary noted that the management was completely unaware of her alleged illicit activities. According to the school administration, Havaldar was a veteran staff member at the institute and was on the verge of retirement.

“But we have no idea about this NEET case, what she was doing, when she was appointed, or who appointed her… she has been a lecturer at our institute since 1992, with an M.Sc. B.Ed. degree, and her subject is Physics. She is due to retire on June 30, 2026,” Dr Gawli stated. Further investigation into the case is currently underway.

Earlier, the National Testing Agency (NTA) had activated a dedicated facility on the NEET (UG)-2026 registration portal for candidates to submit their bank account details for the processing of examination fee refunds. The agency has also informed that the deadline for submission of details is May 27, 2026 (till 11:50 pm).

The NTA said that the facility has been made available on the NEET-UG registration portal for all candidates eligible for the refund process. It added that candidates must log in using their credentials to access the refund link and submit their bank account details.

The Union Education Ministry has ordered strengthened security measures for the upcoming re-examination scheduled on June 21. Officials have also indicated that NEET-UG will be conducted in computer-based test (CBT) mode from next year to prevent such irregularities. (ANI)