Odisha question paper leak: Eight including headmaster arrested

Bhubaneswar: As many as eight persons, including a headmaster, were arrested late on Tuesday night in connection with the alleged Matric question paper leak at RK Shakuntala High School in Rupra under Kesinga block in Kalahandi district.

Odisha has been rocked by allegations of a question paper leak in the High School Certificate (HSC) examination that concluded on March 20.

The State Education Department had filed a complaint with Kalahandi SP on March 14, claiming that there had been a question paper leak. The police took the matter seriously and following an investigation into the incident, nabbed eight persons. Among the arrested was Pranabandhu Sahu, a school headmaster who was appointed as the examination controller.

All the arrested persons have been forwarded to court today. As many as 22 mobile phones, five laptops, one CPU, a pen drive and net cash of Rs 18,950 were seized from their possession. The police are currently investigating the matter further.

It is interesting to note that the Odisha government has denied any question paper leak in the HSC examination. The Opposition parties including the BJP and Congress cornered the government in the Assembly by alleging that the question paper of Class 10 or the matriculation examination was leaked.

This incident has caused a lot of concern among students and parents who have been eagerly waiting for the results of the examination. The government needs to take strict action against those responsible for the leak and ensure that such incidents do not happen in the future.

This is not the first time that Odisha has faced allegations of question paper leaks. There were similar allegations of question paper leaks in the Odisha Teacher Eligibility Test (OTET). The state government had ordered a high-level probe into the matter and had assured students that those responsible would be brought to book.