Assam schools allegedly sold exam papers to non-affiliated

Guwahati: There is a serious issue regarding the recent leak of a Class XI mathematics question paper in Assam. An official from the Assam State School Education Board (ASSEB) suggested that some affiliated schools may have leaked the papers to non-affiliated schools for money. This scandal has led the Assam Congress Committee to demand the resignation of Education Minister Ranoj Pegu and ASSEB Chairperson RC Jain. Non-affiliated schools are not allowed to enroll students, but sources say some have managed to conduct exams by obtaining leaked question papers from affiliated schools. In response to the leaks, ASSEB has filed a report with the CID to investigate the situation. All remaining Class XI exams scheduled from March 24 to March 29 have been canceled, affecting over 300,000 students. FIRs have also been filed by education authorities in various districts. The ASSEB official indicated that non-affiliated schools appear to send students to take Class XII board exams at affiliated schools. They suspect that the question paper packets were opened early to help these non-affiliated schools. Pegu confirmed the leak, stating that 18 schools, including three government ones, broke the security seal a day before the exam. ASSEB has suspended the affiliation of 15 private schools. The state government plans to take further action against three other schools involved in the scandal. Sources stated that the motive behind leaking the papers may be to enhance the school's reputation and attract more students. The schools, responsible for managing exam papers, have not been monitored by ASSEB during evaluations. Aasu leaders have called for the formation of an independent committee to manage examinations and suggested that the state board needs to be free from political influence.