06-05-2025
Plastic cover in which question papers were transported was torn but paper was not leaked, clarifies KPSC
Responding to allegations that the question paper for the Mains exam for recruitment of Gazetted Probationers held on Monday could have been leaked as a question paper bundle had opened even before it reached an exam centre in Bengaluru, the Karnataka Public Service Commission (KPSC) has emphatically denied the allegations on Tuesday. 'No question paper was leaked during the Essay paper exam of the main examination. There was no other kind of lapse except for the possibility that the packing cover of the question paper was mechanically torn,' it said in a statement issued on Tuesday.
'A thorough investigation has been conducted on this matter and detailed reports have been obtained from the supervisors of the examination sub-centres and the invigilators appointed by the Commission,' it said.
In its statement, KPSC claimed that the cover that was opened before the question paper bundle reached the centre in this particular case is a 'water-proof plastic cover used to protect the question papers from damage during transportation', which are 'only for the purpose of protecting them from liquids and are not tamper evident covers'.
Further the KPSC said that all the security seals on the boxes, trunks and tamper-evident covers containing the question papers distributed to the said examination sub-centre were found to be intact. This was confirmed by the candidates, sub-centre supervisors, local invigilators and room inspectors.
'Therefore, it is possible that the plastic covers that were packed to protect the liquids inside the tamper-evident envelopes in room-2 of the said sub-center may have been mechanically torn during packing or transportation, and there are no other shortcomings. Furthermore, no such reports have been received from any other examination sub-centers conducted by the Commission,' KPSC further said.
It further assured aspirants that the commission was not only taking care in maintaining the confidentiality, safety and security of the examination materials, but was also acting in the most transparent manner and appealed to aspirants not to be discouraged by baseless claims on social media.
