The Uttar Pradesh government on March 2 cancelled the Review Officer/Assistant Review Officer (RO/ARO) preliminary examination conducted by the Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission (UPPSC) on February 11, following allegations of paper leak. The re-examination will now be conducted in the next six months.
“In view of the evidence provided to the government and the report made available by the Commission, it has been instructed by the Chief Minister that the examinations of both sessions of the Review Officer/Assistant Review Officer (Preliminary) Examination, organized by the Public Service Commission on February 11, 2024, be cancelled. The examinations will be rescheduled and conducted again within the next six months,” reads a statement from the U.P. government.
The government also referred the investigation of paper leak to the Special Task Force (STF) of the State police to identify individuals involved in the leak. “The Chief Minister has instructed that this matter be referred to the Special Task Force (STF) of the State to identify individuals involved in these criminal activities and to take strict legal and punitive measures against them. The STF will expedite its investigation to ensure swift action against all those responsible for the question leak,” added the State government’s statement.
U.P. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said that there can be no compromise with the sanctity of examinations and those who play with the hard work of the youngsters will not be spared under any circumstances.
The decision came after numerous complaints regarding certain questions from the exam paper circulating widely on social media.
UPPSC on February 11 conducted the examination at more than 2,000 centres across 58 districts for the 411 seats with a whopping 10,76,004 candidates registering for it. The examination made headlines due to the massive influx of candidates amid charges of paper leak and discrepancies.
Opposition parties described the decision as a victory of the youth, adding that the U.P. government was forced to bow down in front of public pressure.
“The cancellation of RO/ARO exam shows that BJP first tries every possible way to hide its misdeeds but when there is public pressure, it retreats due to the fear of electoral defeat. This is the victory of the youth and another sure message of BJP’s defeat in the upcoming elections,” wrote Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav on X.
