Thaindian News

Lucknow, May 5 (IANS) Four people have been arrested in Uttar Pradesh’s Farrukhabad district for their alleged involvement in leaking the question paper of a B.Ed entrance test that was cancelled just hours before it was to start Wednesday morning, officials said. The test will now take place June 19.
“The decision to conduct the exam has been taken in consultation with the state’s higher education officials,” G.P Tripathi, registrar of the Lucknow University (LU) that has to conduct the exam, told reporters here Wednesday night.

The university was scheduled to conduct the test for around 100,000 seats in different universities and colleges of the state. Around 700,000 students were to appear in the exam.

“In the meeting with the higher education department, it was also decided that the result of the B.Ed exam would be declared July 19, while the counselling would start July 25. We will make every effort so that the B.Ed classes commence from August 1,” added Tripathi.

According to the police, the four men, all residents of Farrukhabad, were arrested Tuesday night from a photostat shop, where they were caught photocopying the question paper.

“We have arrested four people with several copies of the computerised question paper. Several people have also been detained,” Additional Superintendent of Police A.K. Jain told reporters in Farrukhabad, some 300 km from Lucknow.

“Acting on a tip-off, we raided the shop and arrested the four. Later, we faxed the question paper recovered from their possession to the varsity officials, who confirmed about the paper leakage,” Jain said.

“A fax machine, two photocopiers and a computer at the shop were seized. We are screening them,” he added.

Interestingly, Farrukhabad district did not have a centre for the exam.

Candidates were in for a shock when they came to know about the cancellation of the exam after reaching their test centres.

“It’s shocking and frustrating. I came from Sonbhadra, over 400 km from here, to appear for the exam. But on reaching here, I came to know that it was cancelled,” Arvind Giri, a candidate, said.