Hyderabad: A major scandal broke out at The Professor Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural University (PJTSAU) after an exam paper was leaked on WhatsApp, leading to the cancellation of the examination.
The question paper was set for third-year students of BSc (Agriculture) appearing for the first semester exams. After the paper emerged, the university’s Registrar cancelled the admissions of 35 in-service students, suspended one senior official and three staff members and ordered a detailed cybercrime investigation on Thursday, January 8.
The 35 in-service candidates had joined the BSc (Agriculture) course three years ago under the in-service quota. Currently working as Agricultural Extension Officers, the students have been sent back to the Agriculture Department and blacklisted from seeking future admissions under the in-service quota.
Unusual marks lead to probe
The paper leak came to light after Vice-Chancellor Aldas Janayya recently visited PJTSAU and scrutinised the mark sheets of the latest semester examinations.
He noticed that many in-service students secured above 90 marks in pathology. Academics pointed out that pathology is considered one of the toughest subjects, where even top-performing students rarely score beyond 60 per cent. The unusually high marks raised a strong suspicion.
Janayya ordered that closed circuit television (CCTV) camera footage be inspected, after which it came to light that a student completed the exam in 10 minutes and was idle for the rest of the duration. Upon being questioned, the in-service student revealed that the paper was leaked on WhatsApp from Warangal.
AI-based pens
The student further revealed that candidates used AI-based pens, which had the answers to all 40 objective questions. The invigilators were unable to detect cheating.
Following the initial investigation, the Vice-Chancellor constituted a three-member inquiry committee, which found an organised racket at the heart of the scam. It found that a senior official and an employee from Warangal Agricultural College had colluded to leak question papers of six examinations.
The accused reportedly circulated the papers through WhatsApp groups and collected between Rs 10,000 and Rs 20,000 from each candidate. In total, 35 in-service students studying in various agricultural colleges across the state received the leaked papers.
Cybercrime probe ordered
Calling the malpractice “grave,” the Vice-Chancellor ordered a cybercrime probe into the paper leak. The probe will also examine lapses in question paper security and the conduct of examinations across the university.
The scandal has raised serious concerns over exam integrity and the growing misuse of advanced technology in higher education assessments.
Bharat Rahstra Samithi (BRS) MLA Harish Rao on Friday, January 9, slammed Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy over paper leaks in Telangana. Rao alleged that Congress’ incompetence, inefficiency and corruption has led to paper leaks in the state. The former Telangana minister also accused the Congress of being incapable of securing the future of students.
He cited the latest question paper leak at Prof Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural University as an example of the government’s inability to conduct fair exams. The Siddipet MLA demanded strict action against those involved.
Rao urged the government to prevent such incidents in the future and maintai the integrity of competitive exams.
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