Last Updated:
Rumors of a question paper leak for the BPSC preliminary exam sparked chaos at an exam center on Friday.
BPSC Exam: Around 300-400 students skipped the exam alleging that the paper was leaked.
Rumors of a question paper leak for the Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC) preliminary exam led to uproar at an exam center on Friday. The commission also warned of police action against those responsible for the alleged “conspiracy.”
Around 300-400 candidates boycotted the BPSC 70th Integrated Combined Competitive Examination (CCE) 2024 at Bapu Examination Center in Kumhrar, Patna, alleging that the question paper was leaked on social media prior to the examination.
However, BPSC Chairman Parmar Ravi Manubhai said that the exam was conducted fairly across more than 900 centres, with nearly five lakh candidates appearing for the test on Friday.
“The BPSC CCE 70th preliminary examination was held in a single shift from noon to 2 pm. The examination was held in 912 centers across the state, and of those, free and fair exams were held in 911 centres,” Parmar told PTI.
“However, in one center in Patna, some of the candidates snatched questions papers from the invigilators and stormed out of the examination hall screaming that the paper had been leaked. Snatching of question papers from invigilators and showing those to outsiders tantamount to looting public property. Police action will be initiated against these persons who seem to have acted as a part of conspiracy… we are examining CCTV footage to identify them,” Parmar said.
“The use of mobile phones was strictly prohibited inside the examination centre, so it's unclear how these candidates learned about the rumors of a question paper leak. Clearly, there's a conspiracy involved. The police are looking into the matter, but I assure you, there was no leak of the question paper,” he added.
Patna District Magistrate Chandrashekhar Singh reached the examination center upon hearing about the commotion.
A large crowd gathered outside the exam Centre, and news channels showed footage of the District Magistrate slapping an unruly bystander and instructing the police to detain those causing trouble.
“Authorities are in the process of registering an FIR against those who attempted to take law into their hands inside and outside an examination center at Kumhrar. There was a slight delay in distribution of question booklets inside one-two examination halls at the centre,” Singh said.
“Against the seating arrangements for 272 students in each examination hall, boxes of each question booklet had only 192 sets. This caused delay in the distribution of question booklets… this was objected to by the aspirants who snatched question papers from invigilators and alleged that the paper was leaked,” he said.
Following this, around 300-400 students came out of their examination halls alleging that the paper was leaked, the DM said, adding they boycotted the exam.
“The remaining candidates of other examination halls in the same center took the exam and came out of the halls only after 2 pm. The district administration will submit its report on the incident to the BPSC for appropriate action,” the DM said.
Speaking to reporters, some students claimed that the question booklet/OMR sheets were given late.
“When seating arrangements were made for 272 candidates, why only 192 question papers were brought in one set?” questioned a student outside the Kumhrar centre.
ALSO READ: How Formal And Informal Learning Can Help You Build Your Career – All About RPL
Bihar Police Investigates BPSC Paper Leak Claims
Bihar Police have launched an investigation into the allegations made by students regarding a possible question paper leak. Deputy Inspector General of the Economic Offenses Unit (EOU), Manavjit Singh Dhillon, stated, “We are gathering details and closely monitoring the situation.”
The preliminary examination of the Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC) was conducted on Friday to select candidates for Group A and B posts.
Earlier, BPSC aspirants staged a protest in Patna, opposing alleged rule changes for the preliminary exam and requesting an extension of the exam date. However, the BPSC clarified that there were no changes in the examination process.
(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed – PTI)
