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JKSSB cancels JE recruitment exam after paper leak allegations; parties react
The JKSSB secretary also said that aspirants, who created hooliganism and snatched question papers and OMR sheets were being identified with the help of CCTV cameras
The JKSSB announced the cancellation of the OMR-based written test and said they would be held afresh. The written examination was scheduled for Sunday and the timings were also changed from 11 am to 12 noon keeping in view the weather, said JKSSB secretary Atul Kumar, adding that the exam was conducted at 35 centres--18 in Jammu and 17 in Kashmir.
“While exams started at 12 noon and conducted smoothly in all the 34 centres, some aspirants created hooliganism at Kothibagh centre. “They neither appeared in the exam and nor allowed others. They snatched question papers and OMR sheets of other candidates and came outside,” said Kumar.
He said that the aspirants even overpowered female staff at the Kothibagh centre.
There was no leakage of the question paper whatsoever but the videos of some aspirants with images of solving question papers in the lawns of government girls higher secondary school at Kothibagh went viral over social media sites, he added. “Considering this, we have decided to cancel the entire process. Now, exams will be rescheduled next month,” he said.
The JKSSB secretary also said that aspirants, who created hooliganism and snatched question papers and OMR sheets were being identified with the help of CCTV cameras. “They will be taken to task under law,” he said.
A notification issued by the JKSSB also read, “The Jammu and Kashmir Services Selection Board (JKSSB) has cancelled the OMR-based written examination for the posts of Junior Engineer (Electrical) in the Power Development Department, which was conducted on Sunday, August 24, 2025”.
The JKSSB has assured candidates that the fresh date(s) for the examination will be notified separately.
The allegations of paper leak prompted a flurry of reactions against the board and government.
“After banning books and locking schools, now the sale of SSB exam papers by the government is yet another blow to J&K’s youth. This is the so-called ‘youth package’ for a region where 65% of the population is under 35,” said People’s democratic Party in a post on X.
PDP leader Iltija Mufti said: “Youngsters across J&K placed an overwhelming faith in NC hoping for transparency in recruitment exams after electing them. But I’m appalled at how the NC government is wrecking their future because of their sheer incompetency to even conduct today’s JE Electrical Exam at Kothi Bagh Centre. Instead of bringing transparency today’s paper leak suggests that this government is fast becoming a den of corruption.”
Peoples Conference president Sajad Lone called it ‘daylight robbery in recruitment’. “ Will someone please tell us what is happening. Aspirant for JE electrical are first asked to leave the exam halls as paper is cancelled. Some continue taking the exams. Then all are asked to come in again. The paper is on social media well before the aspirants are ready to take the exam. Will heads roll or will we be dished out yet another round of third grade fiction,” he said.
Apni Party president Altaf Bukhari said that the alleged paper leak in today’s Junior Engineer (Electrical) examination was deeply concerning. “The protest by aspirants is entirely justified, as their future is at stake. This incident exposes serious mismanagement within the Jammu and Kashmir Services Selection Board (JKSSB). Unfortunately, repeated scams and administrative lapses that have surfaced over the past few years have already damaged the integrity of the institutions responsible for recruitment examinations,” he said.
However, Vinkal Sharma, 26 year old B. Tech engineer, who blew the lid off major job scams that rocked Jammu and Kashmir after revocation of Article 370, called cancellation a ‘cruel joke’ with genuine aspirants.
“This mismanagement could have been avoided by JKSSB by changing the set of question paper as there is provision of having two sets of question paper to be printed to tackle such situations. Possibility is that only one set of question paper was printed (which is illegal) to save cost. Investigation should be done why JKSSB has not followed protocols and culprits should be punished as per law,” he said.
