Assam board cancels all class 11 exams after paper leak

Guwahati: All examinations of Class 11 of the Assam state board from March 24 to 29, comprising 36 subjects, have been cancelled following reports of several paper leaks at different places, Education Minister Ranoj Pegu said.

Earlier, the Higher Secondary first-year mathematics exam, scheduled for March 21, was compromised when the question paper was leaked, prompting authorities to cancel the exam and file a police complaint.

The Higher Secondary first-year, or Class 11, examinations commenced on March 6 and were originally slated to conclude on March 29.

"Due to reports of question paper leaks and breaches of protocol, the remaining subjects of the HS First Year Examination 2025 (scheduled from March 24-29) stand cancelled," Pegu said in a post on X.

The official order from the Assam State School Education Board (ASSEB) was shared by the minister. Further decisions on the revised examination schedule will be made during the ASSEB board meeting on Monday.

In another post, the minister said the mathematics paper was leaked after 18 schools, including three government institutes, across the state broke the security seal a day before the scheduled examination.

The Assam State School Education Board (ASSEB) has suspended the affiliation of 15 private schools across 10 districts for breaking the seal of Class 11 Mathematics question papers before the scheduled time, leading to a leak.

"The state government will also take action against three other schools for violating the rules in a similar manner," he added.

Police complaints will be lodged, and these schools have been barred from admitting Class 11 students for the 2025-26 academic year, Pegu said.

According to the ASSEB order issued by Controller of Examinations (in-charge) Ranjan Kumar Das, all inspectors of schools and principals of lead colleges had received back the sealed packets of Mathematics question paper following its cancellation.

An FIR has been lodged at CID Headquarters in Guwahati, and 18 additional cases will be filed at respective police stations against the educational institutions, as stated by Das to PTI.

"Out of the 18 centres, we believe that not all have leaked the papers. Probably only one or two centres leaked the papers, and those went viral on social media. The culprits will be found after a detailed probe by the police," he added.

Last week, the Class 9 English annual exam in Assam's Barpeta district was cancelled after the question paper leaked on social media.

(inputs from PTI)