Ahmednagar college provided solved papers

Kicker: HSC paper leakMumbai: The crime branch’s investigation into the mathematics paper leak has revealed that the junior college in Ahmednagar district, whose principal and two teachers were arrested, had provided solved papers to their students, who appeared for the board examination in the college

Kicker: HSC paper leak

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Mumbai: The crime branch’s investigation into the mathematics paper leak has revealed that the junior college in Ahmednagar district, whose principal and two teachers were arrested, had provided solved papers to their students, who appeared for the board examination in the college.

As per the police, the two teachers – Kiran Dighe (the runner) and Sachin Mahanor – appointed by Matoshree Bhagubai Bhambare Agriculture and Science Junior College – used to collect question papers from the board distribution centre around 9.30am and the college provided solved papers to their students at the scheduled time of the paper – 11.00am. Mahanor, 23, was appointed as Dighe’s assistant.

The other three arrested accused are identified as Bhausaheb Amrute, the principal, the college trustee’s daughter Archana Bhambare and driver Vaibhav Tarte.

All the five accused have been brought to Mumbai and were produced before the Esplanade court on Thursday afternoon. All of them are remanded to police custody till March 13.

The investigation so far has revealed that Dighe, 28, was appointed by the college as a runner and was given the responsibility of collecting exam papers (in sealed covers) from the board distribution centre around 20 kilometres from the college.

Police officials said after collecting Mathematics paper around 9:30am on March 3, Dighe sat in the vehicle and opened one of the bunches, clicked pictures of the paper and sent it to Bhambare, 23, who got the paper solved and distributed it among the students.

The officials said they have seized the mobile phones of the accused and are taking the help of technical experts to retrieve the data to find out if they have circulated other question papers as well.

“Amrute, 54, was aware of the syndicate, and she was part of that,” said a police officer. “It is the principal’s responsibility to open the sealed sets of question paper bunches received by the college and in presence of other teachers and at least two students. But the procedure was not followed by the college.”

The police official said that Dighe also used to send a copy of the question paper to her cousin sister and took ₹10,000 from her for every paper. The cousin purportedly “sold” the question paper to others by charging money, he added.

An FIR has been registered at Shivaji Park police station on March 4 in connection with the paper leak, after a class 12 student was caught copying at an examination centre in Dadar while appearing for a mathematics paper. He was allegedly found using a mobile handset for copying and an enquiry with him had revealed that the student had received portions of the maths question paper on his WhatsApp at 10:17am, 43 minutes before the scheduled time.

The case was then transferred to unit 5 of the crime branch for investigation. Initial probe revealed that the student caught at Dadar centre had received the portions of the mathematics question paper from a distant relative from Ahmednagar district. The chain eventually led the police to Dighe.