CBSE paper leak: 18 students questioned

A private tutor suspected to be at the centre of the sensational leak of CBSE question papers, and at least 25 people, including 18 students, were interrogated by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Delhi Police even as protests grew louder over the issue.

Vicky Wadhwa, a 40-year-old tutor based in central Delhi's Rajender Nagar, was named by the CBSE in its complaint filed with Delhi Police.

A BCA degree holder from Delhi University, Wadhwa owns Vidya Coaching Centre and was picked up for questioning by the SIT comprising officials attached with the Crime Branch.

Among the 25 people questioned in connection with the leaks of Class XII economics paper and Class X mathematics paper earlier this week, included 11 school students, seven college students, five private tutors and two others.

While the 11 students belong to different schools, those from college are first-year students.

"We are trying to establish the point of origin (of the leak). The papers were being circulated through WhatsApp among students and tutors. These question papers were leaked a day before the exam. The CBSE has named a private tutor in its complaint and he has been interrogated," Special Commissioner R P Uadhyay told reporters.

"We have no information that this leakage is pan-India but if such a thing emerges, we will send teams outside Delhi," he said.

The Delhi Police registered two cases on March 27 and 28, following a complaint from the CBSE, which had received an unaddressed envelope on March 26 containing four sheets of handwritten questions of the Class 12 economics paper.

The police has formed the SIT comprising two deputy commissioners of police, four assistant commissioners of police and five inspectors to investigate the matter.

The team will be supervised by the Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) Alok Kumar.

In its complaint, the CBSE said it had received a complaint by fax on March 23 that a man running a coaching institute in Rajinder Nagar was involved in paper leakage.

The CBSE also named two schools in Rajinder Nagar in its complaint.

"It was indicated in the papers kept inside the envelope that the question paper was leaked and circulated through WhatsApp group numbers," the complaint said.

If one goes by the complaint, the CBSE was tipped about the possible leakage of question paper a couple of days before the exams were conducted.

A senior police officer said the CBSE came to know about the paper leak by mail and investigators are now trying to find out who had sent the mail.