UP board exams: 16 solver gangs caught, 14 from principal's residence

In two separate raids here, the Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force has caught 16 persons solving the Class 10 English question paper of the UP Board Examination, an official said on Saturday.

The paper was scheduled for the morning shift (8.30 am to 11.45 am) of the Board examination on Friday.

In the first instance, 14 people were found solving the question paper at the residence of a school principal, the official said.

He said a Special Task Force team, along with District Inspector of Schools Balmukund Prasad, raided the Jagannath Singh Public Inter College at Katiyamau village in Hardoi district.

Acting on a tip-off, they also raided the principal's residence located 3-4 kilometres away and found five men and nine women writing the answers. One of them introduced himself as a teacher of the school.

The Special Task Force has recovered 20 answer sheets from them.

In the second event, two women were found solving the paper outside the Jai Subhash Mahabali Inter College in Dalel Nagar area of the district, the official added.

District Inspector of Schools Balmukund Prasad told PTI that the two solver gangs have been impersonating students who were appearing for the examination at the respective centres.

He said the Special Task Force has arrested all the 16 solvers, and the answer sheets and question papers confiscated from them have been sealed.

Prasad said the centre administrators and static magistrates of both the schools will be replaced.

He added that a letter has been written to higher authorities for action against the centre administrators, external administrators and static magistrates of both the centres.