E-Paper
SSC paper leak: History paper also out minutes before exam
On Wednesday, Goving Sharma of Samvad Foundation said he and several colleagues received the history paper on their phones from 10.10am; the exams begin at 11am.
The Bhiwandi police on Wednesday registered a first information report after complaints of possible leaks of four Secondary School Certificate question papers in the area. Just hours after the police registered the case, the history and political science question paper held on Wednesday was reportedly circulated on social messaging apps minutes before the exam began.
The FIR was filed almost a week after the Bhiwandi-based Samvad Foundation reported the first possible leak to the education board. On March 14, Govind Sharma, the founder of the Samvad Foundation sent an email to the divisional board after several members of the organisation got images of SSC papers held that week. Screenshots shared in the email showed the Algebra paper, scheduled for 11am on March 11 was circulated on a messaging app at 10.13am, almost 45 minutes before students started writing the exam. The organisation also sent emails hinting at possible leaks of the science 1 and 2 papers, held on March 15 and March 18.
Officials at the divisional board did not approach the Bhiwandi police until late on Tuesday. The board has so far also refused to label the cases question paper leaks. “We still do not know if a lot of people got the paper, as the police are investigating the case. Only after we know that can we say something,” said Sharad Khandagale, secretary, Mumbai divisional board.
On Wednesday, Sharma said he and several colleagues received the history paper on their phones from 10.10am; the exams begin at 11am. “We have informed the board and the police and have also given them the screenshots that we got,” Sharma said. The board’s flying squad also caught three students with their mobile phones before entering an examination hall in Bhiwandi. “Outside the exam centre, a board official found a few girls checking their phones inside an autorickshaw. The students were supposed to be in the exam hall by 10:15am,” said MB Shinde, senior inspector of Narpoli police station, Bhiwandi.
Question papers are usually transported from the divisional office to custodies in each area a day before exams.From there, the papers are sent off on the day of the exams to their centres. Examiners break the question paper seal and distribute papers to students 10 minutes before the exam begins. Sharma said there is a possibility that the paper was leaked either in the first or second stage, as the images reached students well before the exams. This rules the papers being leaked at the exam centres.
Following the FIR, the board has now asked all flying squads to tighten vigilance across centres in the region. “We have briefed squads to be extremely vigilant for the last paper scheduled for Friday. Mobile phones are banned at exam centres,” said Khandagale.
Meanwhile, the Bhiwandi police is questioning a few people in connection with the case. So far, no arrests have been made.
