Sadar Police on Sunday arrested two persons in connection with the Std XII Physics and Chemistry paper leak that recently surfaced at the St Ursula High School examination centre in Civil Lines. The accused have been identified as Nishikant Sukhdeo Mool (40), a resident of Zingabai Takli, and Farhan Akhtar Fahim (18) of Kapil Nagar. Both were produced before the court, which granted police custody remand till February 26 for further questioning. Tutor of small batches Police said Mool works as a private tutor and runs small tuition batches of around 10 to 12 students. During the investigation, officers found that the WhatsApp group through which the question papers were allegedly circulated had been created by him.

 

The mobile number used to run the group was also registered in his name. Farhan Fahim, the second accused, is a student. Investigators believe he was part of the same student group and allegedly posted answers to the question paper that had been shared there. Police are now verifying his exact role and whether he was acting on someone else’s instructions. 

 

Chemistry paper on WhatsApp The arrests follow the detection of a serious breach in exam security on February 21. The scam came to light when the Chemistry question paper was found on a student’s mobile phone even before the exam began at the St Ursula centre. Suspicion was first raised by a supervising teacher who noticed a girl student repeatedly asking to visit the toilet. Finding her behaviour unusual, the teacher checked and seized her phone. The inspection reportedly revealed that the Chemistry paper, along with possible answers, had already been circulating in a WhatsApp group. Based on the findings, Sadar Police registered an offence under Section 6 of the Maharashtra Prevention of Malpractices at University, Board and Other Specified Examinations Act, 1982, against unknown persons.

 

Further inquiry confirmed that the Chemistry paper dated February 18 and portions of the Physics paper dated February 16 were present on students’ phones before the exams started. Officials noted that the Chemistry paper was shared at 10.37 am — about 23 minutes before the scheduled start time of 11 am — from mobile number 9579874939. Education Officer (Secondary), Zilla Parishad, Nagpur, Anil Dahiphale, along with Extension Officer Ramesh Harde, examined the seized devices. A joint verification by Dahiphale, Deputy Education Officer Praveen Kamble and Deputy Education Officer Kiran Chinkure confirmed that the leaked paper matched the original question paper. Police said the timing of the messages clearly points to unauthorised access to confidential exam material. Technical analysis, including call detail records and WhatsApp data, is now underway to trace the full source and determine if a larger network is involved. The investigation is being carried out by Senior Police Inspector Amol Deshmukh of Sadar police station under the guidance of DCP Zone I Nityanand Jha. 

 

 

Taking serious cognisance of cases of copying in HSC examination conducted by Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said that examination centres where mass copying for classes 10 and 12 board exams is reported will be permanently revoked. Meanwhile, Nagpur Divisional Board has changed the complete staff deployed for examination work at St Ursula High School and Junior College as two students of Class 12 were found to have Chemistry and Physics papers on their WhatsApp groups at that centre. Nagpur Divisional Board Chairman Shivling Patwe has instructed that the seal of the question papers should not be opened before 11 am. Usually the sealed pack of question paper reaches centre by 10.30 am and gets opened then. According to Patwe, the fiasco that took place at St Ursula, Contd from page 1 was because of the early opening of the pack of question papers.

 

he board papers are delivered to the examination centers through custodians. The 12th examination is being conducted at 88 examination centers in Nagpur city and 84 in Nagpur rural. During a surprise inspection at a centre at Washim, at least 26 staff members of a college have been booked after a mass copying incident during HSC examination. 581 students had allegedly indulged in mass copying at the centre when they were writing Physics paper. When ‘The Hitavada’ contacted senior official of State Board, he said, “These copying cases were not expected as strict vigil was planned. Now Government has decided to take strict measures. Before Washim the cases were reported in Beed, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, and Jalna districts. St. Ursula High School and Junior College has been designated as the examination center for the 12th standard examination of 688 students of various branches from five junior colleges in the city. These include S.F. S. Junior College, Jawahar Knight Junior College, Islamia Science Junior College, Sandipani and St. Ursula High School and Junior College.