School principal held for leak of exam paper in UP, 51 arrested so far

A private school principal was arrested on Wednesday in connection with the leak of the class 12 English paper in Uttar Pradesh, police said.

With the fresh arrest, the total number of people taken into custody in connection with the exam paper leak last week has risen to 51.

Deputy Superintendent of Police of Rasra, Shivnarayan Vaishya, said, ”One Akshay Lal Yadav, principal of a private school has been arrested by Ubhaon police. A case regarding the leak of class 12 paper was lodged at Ubhaon Police station on Sunday. The case was lodged on the complaint of Additional District Inspector of Schools Rakesh Kumar Singh.” Those arrested earlier in the case include the District Inspector of Schools (DIoS) of Ballia Brajesh Kumar Mishra, managers and principals of private inter college and three scribes.

The exam paper leak led to the cancellation of the exam in 24 districts including Ballia. The cancelled exam will now be held on April 13.

Police have claimed that the paper was leaked by the manager of a private inter college in Ballia who sold solved copies for Rs 25,000 to 30,000 each. The solved question paper was also shared over a popular messaging application.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had directed the Special Task Force of the Uttar Pradesh Police to investigate the matter. He has also asked officials to impose the National Security Act (NSA) on those found involved in the matter.