Question paper leak case: Kerala High Court denies anticipatory bail to YouTube channel owner

Kochi: The Kerala High Court on Thursday denied anticipatory bail to one of the accused in the Class 11 Christmas examination question paper leak case from last year, following which he surrendered before the Crime Branch wing of the Kerala police.

Justice P V Kunhikrishnan dismissed the anticipatory bail plea of the accused, Shuhaib, stating that the prosecution had established the need for his custodial interrogation. The court directed him to surrender before the investigating officer and cooperate with the probe.

Following the High Court order, Shuhaib surrendered at the Crime Branch office in Kozhikode, where he told reporters that he and his YouTube channel, M S Solutions, had been falsely implicated in the case.

He alleged that a larger platform had conspired against him and his channel.

The High Court denied him relief, stating that granting bail would send the "wrong message to society".

In its order, the court emphasised that examinations must be conducted fairly and transparently, and any leakage of question papers amounted to "a clear case of cheating" against students who had prepared diligently for the exams.

"Therefore, the sanctity of examinations must be upheld in the education system. The sanctity of an examination refers to the importance of maintaining its integrity, fairness, and authenticity.

"Leakage of a question paper can significantly impact the examination process, candidates, and the education department. It can lead to a loss of credibility for the department, cause anxiety and stress among students, and provide an unfair advantage to those with access to leaked papers," the High Court stated.

The court also noted that, in this case, the prosecution sought a detailed investigation, which required the custodial interrogation of the accused.

"I am not in a position to say at this stage that the petitioner (Shuhaib) has not committed the offence or that his custodial interrogation is unnecessary. Let the investigation proceed per the law. The petitioner must surrender before the investigating officer and cooperate with the probe," Justice Kunhikrishnan said.

The court further observed that it lacked the expertise to determine whether a question paper leak had occurred.

However, academicians and experts in the field had provided statements asserting that the predictions made by the accused regarding exam questions would have been "impossible" without access to the actual papers.

Academicians and teachers have stated that such accurate predictions would not have been possible without the question paper being leaked. There is no reason to disbelieve their statements, the court said.

"In these circumstances, this court cannot contradict the opinions of teachers and experts, especially when considering a bail application," it added.

On Wednesday, the Crime Branch arrested a peon from a private aided school in connection with the case, bringing the total number of arrests to three.

According to the Crime Branch, the peon is suspected of leaking the question papers to the YouTube channel.

The other two arrested individuals were teachers who had taught on the platform.