PATNA: Police has arrested several people on Sunday in connection with the alleged leak of question papers for the second phase of combined recruitment examinations conducted by the Bihar Staff Selection Commission (BSSC).
Police in Nawada district arrested 27 people allegedly involved in helping candidates write the correct answers while in Patna, they have arrested five candidates for alleged cheating.
Since morning, reports have circulated about question papers and sheets with answers being sold in the market at prices ranging between Rs 1,000 and Rs 10,000.
The reports were confirmed when comparisons were made between the question papers provided to candidates in the examination hall and those sold in the market.
Even as opposition parties attacked the Nitish Kumar-led government for irresponsibility in conducting the examination and bringing dishonor to Bihar, BSSC authorities denied the sanctity of the examinations was compromised by any leak of question papers.
“There was no leak. All this was a rumour spread by those with vested interests in order to distract and mislead the candidates,” said BSSC secretary Parameshwar Ram to The New Indian Express.
Meanwhile, hundreds of candidates protested outside the headquarters of BSSC in Patna demanding cancellation of the examinations. Similar claims of question paper leak had surfaced during BSSC’s first-phase examinations last Sunday, but the authorities had rejected them.
Ram has asserted there are no plans to cancel the examinations over such claims.
“These examinations are not conducted by the education department, but I still have to answer questions from the concerned people and the media,” said education minister Ashok Chaudhary. “The general administration department conducts this examination, but as a minister, I assure that claims of the leak will be probed and strong action will be taken against the guilty,” he added.
In Nawada, police have seized 12 laptops, over 12 mobile phones, some electronic devices, and over 18 bikes from the 27 people arrested during a raid in Warsliganj area. A day before the examination, police in Patna had arrested three people and claimed to have busted a racket engaged in leaking question papers.
As many as 18.5 lakh candidates appeared in the BSSC examinations at 742 centres spread across Bihar on Sunday. The third and fourth phases of the examinations are scheduled on February 19 and 26 respectively.