Uttarakhand paper leak: Exam ‘null’, retest in 3 months

The re-examination for the 416 vacancies of Patwari, Lekpal, and seven other posts will be conducted after three months, the commission said.

On September 21, after the examination concluded around 1.30 pm, screenshots of three pages of the question paper began circulating on social media. The president of Swabhiman Morcha, Bobby Panwar, who posted the images, claimed that the question paper was answered by a college professor for a candidate.

Two arrests, of the candidate and his sister, who allegedly facilitated communication between the latter and the professor, have been made so far. An FIR was registered in the matter at Raipur police station, Dehradun. The candidate had allegedly smuggled an iPhone into the centre and sent the photos to his sister, who got it solved and sent it back.

The candidates and youth protested for a week before Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami promised to recommend a CBI probe in the matter.

The government had constituted a judicial commission of inquiry under the Commission of Inquiry Act, 1952, headed by former Justice U C Dhyani, to investigate the matter. The commission submitted its report on Saturday after holding detailed deliberations with all stakeholders.

“Thereafter, it was decided that maintaining the confidentiality, integrity, and transparency of competitive examinations, along with ensuring that such examinations are above suspicion, is of utmost importance. It is also essential to retain the complete trust of the candidates and the general public in the examination process,” the letter by the Secretary said, attributing this to the cancellation of the exam. The protesting youth had demanded that the exam be cancelled.

The Secretary said that since the investigation is ongoing, the Commission has decided that the written examination be annulled.

Following the debacle, the commission rescheduled two tests slated in October. The commission’s chairperson, G S Martolia, had said that they were aiming to carry out an overhaul of the system and had conducted a meeting with the Electronics Corporation of India Ltd, a public sector enterprise under the Department of Atomic Energy, based in Hyderabad. The commission has sought assistance with jammers to block transmission of 5G signals. The commission has also decided to prioritise government-run institutions to hinder the movement and intervention of external entities.

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