As the alleged leak of Higher Secondary question papers has rocked the State, Assam Education Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma intervening into the matter asked the Assam Higher Secondary Education Council (AHSEC) to finish its ongoing probe within seven days and share the report with the media.
Speaking to media persons in a press conference on Sunday, Education Minister Sarma said, “I spoke to AHSEC Chairman Dayananda Buragohain in the morning. I have told him to ensure that the report of the ongoing investigation committee comes out within a week. Once the report comes out, I have told him to call a press meet and inform the journalists about the findings so that all doubts are cleared.”
The Education Minister, however, said the AHSEC Chairman categorically maintained that there has been no leak of question papers.
“AHSEC Chairman is firm on his stand that there is no leak of question papers. When I asked about the similarities in the questions, he told that this time there has been no model question papers and all the questions have been set from the textbooks. This is why, the degree of similarity is very high. Dayananda Buragohain himself is a very senior educationist and I couldn’t reject his views. So, I told him that the probe should be completely neutral,” Sarma said.
Sarma also advised the AHSEC to postpone the examinations if necessary. “I have told them to change the questions, if necessary, and postpone the examinations for a day or two. But the students shouldn’t face any problem. Of course, the final decision will be taken by the AHSEC. AHSEC is an autonomous body and we can’t directly interfere in their work,” he added.