Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has downplayed the role of Board of Secondary Education of Assam (SEBA) in the General Science question paper leak case in the High School Leaving Certificate (HSLC) Class 10 examinations that has been making headlines in the state this month.
Speaking at the Assembly on Wednesday, CM Sarma said that the investigations so far does not indicate SEBA’s involvement in the paper leak case and should be kept out of discussion.
“As far as I know, investigations have not indicated SEBA’s involvement in the case and is the work of certain individuals who have already been taken into custody. If a detainee accuses a senior official of graft, action will be taken against the said official and not SEBA,” he said.
“SEBA is a department and taking action against a department doesn’t make any sense. If a person is guilty, he will be charged as per law,” he added.
The chief minister further stressed that the administration was able to crack the case within 48 hours of its uncovering.
“We have traced and located the exact location from where the leak originated and spread to four other districts. We cracked the case within 48 hours and there is no indication of SEBA being involved in the leak,” CM Sarma said.
He also informed that the administration in SEBA will be reshuffled in light of the incident, adding that Assam police is committed to nab the remaining accused involved the in infamous case.
Earlier today, Assam Director General of Police (DGP) Gyanendra Pratap Singh said that the investigation into the HSLC question paper leak incident is moving at a fast pace.
Singh was speaking to reported in Dibrugarh where he arrived to take stock of the ongoing probe into the high-profile case which led to the SEBA calling off and rescheduling the particular paper.
“The CID is actively pursuing all leads in the HSLC paper leak case. Our investigation is progressing rapidly. We are all working together as a team to find out the people behind it,” he told reporters.
“Investigations into the HSLC paper leak case are underway in every district Assam. The CID is probing the matter based on the facts they uncovered while interrogating those detained yesterday in connection with the matter,” he added.
Meanwhile, the probing team is working with WhatsApp authorities to find out the source of the question paper leak, informed DGP GP Singh.
He said, “The leaked question paper was rapidly distributed over WhatsApp. We are collaborating with the authorities of the messaging app to find out the source of the paper leak and have written to WhatsApp in this regard.”
GP Singh further went on to reveal about monetary transactions involved in the case. “We have information about transactions amounting to Rs 3,000 involved in the paper leak incident. We suspect that there are several points of origin of the question paper leak,” he said.
The Assam DGP added, “Monetary transactions also took place over mobile applications. So far, we have arrested 25 people out of which 13 are minors.”
