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Junior clerk paper leak: Gujarat ATS arrests 15; exams cancelled
According to government officials, as many as 9.53 lakh candidates registered for the exam for 1,181 posts to be conducted from 11am on Sunday by the Gujarat Panchayat Service Selection Board (GPSSB) at 2,995 centres across the state
The Gujarat government on Sunday cancelled the competitive examination for the Panchayat Junior Clerk recruitment, hours before it was scheduled to be held after its question paper was leaked, officials said.
Amid the leak, the Gujarat Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) arrested 15 people in this connection.
“On Saturday, we caught a gang of 15 people with the leaked paper. It is a very organized gang with a network spread in various states. When the government came to know that the paper has been leaked, they decided to cancel the exams keeping in view the future of lakhs of candidates,” a Gujarat ATS officer said.
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“The Gujarat ATS has been keeping a tight vigil for the last three to four days to ensure that the exam is held in a fair and transparent manner,” he added.
According to government officials, as many as 9.53 lakh candidates registered for the exam for 1,181 posts to be conducted from 11am on Sunday by the Gujarat Panchayat Service Selection Board (GPSSB) at 2,995 centres across the state.
This is for the third time the exam to recruit junior clerks was cancelled owing to an exam paper leak or compromised recruitment process, officials said.
Based on a tip-off, police detained a suspect and recovered a copy of the question paper of the exam early Sunday morning, after which the GPSSB decided to postpone the exam in the wider interest of the candidates, the board said in a statement.
Speaking to the reporters following the cancellation of the examinations, Panchayat Department Development Commissioner Sandeep Kumar on Sunday said that the examination will now be held within the next 100 days.
Meanwhile, the Congress and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) hit out at the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in Gujarat for the paper leak.
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Amit Chavda, leader of the Congress Legislative Party (CLP) sought the resignation of the concerned minister and the arrest of all those responsible for the paper leak.
Congress national spokesperson Shaktisinh Gohil alleged that in the last decade, there were as many as 22 exam paper leaks in Gujarat.
“People of Gujarat have put their faith in BJP by giving them 156 seats and what has the BJP given to the people? A long list of paper leaks?” said Gujarat AAP president Isudan Gadhvi seeking a probe by a retired high court judge.
