Assam paper leak : 2 more held; total arrests at 27

Two more persons have been arrested in connection with the question paper leak of Class 10 board exam in Assam, taking the total number of those held in the case to 27, police said on Thursday.
Assam Police Spokesperson Prasanta Kumar Bhuyan told PTI that the two students were held from Sonitpur and Majuli districts.
The CID, which is investigating the case, had earlier apprehended 25 people, including children, from various parts of Assam, besides interrogating several others.
The general science question paper of the Class 10 matriculation exam got leaked on Sunday night, and the exam scheduled on Monday was cancelled thereafter.
Paper sold for up to Rs 3,000 on WhatsApp: Police
Investigations have revealed that the General Science question paper of class 10 state board examination in Assam were sold for up to Rs 3,000 on WhatsApp, Director-General of Police Gyanendra Pratap Singh said on Thursday.
Speaking to reporters, Singh said WhatsApp’s assistance was being sought to identify the origin of the leak of the question paper.
“The investigation has revealed that the question paper of the General Science examination were sold for anything between Rs 100 and Rs 3,000. We have found that somewhere it was sold for Rs 100, somewhere for Rs 200-300, and it went up to Rs 3,000. Assistance is being sought from WhatsApp to identify the origin of the leak,” he said.
“I am happy with the investigation and the progress we made over the last three days. Hopefully, we will crack this case soon. We will send some more packets of the question paper from upper Assam to the CID headquarters for the purpose of the investigation,” he added.
The General Science question paper of the class 10 matriculation exam conducted by the Board of Secondary Education, Assam (SEBA) was leaked on Sunday night, and the exam scheduled on Monday was cancelled.
The state CID, which is investigating the case, has so far apprehended 25 people, including children, from various parts of Assam, besides interrogating several others to identify the source of the leak.A senior official said the operations will continue till the mastermind is arrested.
“We have picked up some more people and are interrogating them,” he said.
According to a SEBA notification, the cancelled examination will now be held on March 30.
Class 10 paper leak reflects failure on part of govt: CM
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Thursday conceded that the question paper leak for Class 10 state board exam is a “failure” on the part of his government.
During an assembly session, Sarma also stated that the mastermind behind the scandal has been identified.
“The matric paper leak should not have happened. It reflects our failure. I accept it,” he told the House.
The centre in-charge of a school is the main culprit, and three others teachers were also found involved in the matter, he said.
The government, in future, will take all possible steps to further strengthen the Board of Secondary Education, Assam (SEBA), which conducts the Class 10 matriculation examination in the state, Sarma said. “The Assam Police has cracked the case within 48 hours. I request the accused to surrender before the police and share further details,” he added.