Guwahati: Congress protest against paper leak and cancellation of exam

Staff reporter

Guwahati: The recent leak of question papers and the subsequent postponement of the Higher Secondary First Year examination have sparked outrage, leading to a protest by the Congress at the Assam State School Education Board (ASSEB). The party has held the government responsible for the mismanagement of the examination process and has demanded the resignation of Education Minister Ranoj Pegu.

Senior Congress leader Ripun Bora stated, “We, the Guwahati City District Congress Committee, have gathered here to protest as per the directive of the Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC), demanding the resignation of Education Minister Ranoj Pegu and ASSEB Chairman Ramesh Jain.”

He further accused the state BJP government of destroying the education system, alleging that while government schools are being shut down, private schools continue to function. “This government is so incapable that they cannot even conduct a single examination smoothly. For the last 4–5 years, question papers have been getting leaked. They are incapable of even conducting a simple exam like the HS First Year. After the leak of one question paper, they had to postpone all the remaining exams. However, instead of taking responsibility, the Education Minister is blaming the schools for the leak. It doesn’t matter where the question paper was leaked from; the Education Minister must take responsibility,” he said.

Bora also criticized the recent decision regarding the HSLC 2025 examination, stating, “In the recently held HSLC examination, the Social Science paper was complex. In response, the Chief Minister of Assam announced that 10 marks would be awarded to each student. How can the CM decide to grant extra marks when there is a board to make such decisions?”

Today, over 100 Congress members gathered to protest, raising slogans against the state BJP government. They also submitted a letter through the administration to the Chief Minister, demanding the immediate resignation of Education Minister Ranoj Pegu and ASSEB Chairman Ramesh Jain over repeated question paper leaks in board examinations.

 “The repeated leaks in ASSEB-conducted examinations have severely compromised the integrity of Assam’s education system. Despite multiple incidents, no concrete action has been taken to prevent such breaches,” the letter stated.

The Congress unit also raised concerns over persistent issues such as teacher unrest and the lack of adequate appointments, emphasizing that the overall state of education in Assam has deteriorated under the current administration. “The Education Minister, Ranoj Pegu, and Assam State School Education Board Chairman, Ramesh Jain, have failed in their responsibilities and must take accountability. We demand their immediate resignation and a thorough investigation into the repeated lapses.  The future of Assam’s students cannot be compromised any further,” the letter asserted, urging the government to take immediate and strict action.

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