VTU to conduct re-exam for chemistry after paper leak

The Visvesvaraya Technological University (VTU) will hold re-examination for chemistry after a paper leak was confirmed.

Officials in the university said that the fourth semester chemistry paper, the examination for which was held on Friday, leaked a day before the examination. However, the VTU is yet to announce fresh dates for the re-exam.

Students appeared for the exam between 2 pm and 5 pm on Friday. It was only at 7 pm that the university officials got confirmation that the paper was leaked. “Students told us that the leaked question paper was circulated on social media and WhatsApp groups. Some of them had received the paper on Thursday itself,” said Prof H N Jagannath Reddy, Registrar, VTU.

According to top officials, VTU suspects that someone who was part of drafting the question paper could have possibly leaked the paper and hence, a police complaint has been lodged. “The paper that was circulated among students was allegedly a manuscript of the actual question paper that was given to the students. The handwritten paper also had the same set of questions identical to the one that had been sent to the varsity as a draft copy,” said one of the officials at the evaluation wing of the university.

However, the paper that was circulated had differed from the original, in that the questions were not in order. “This is not as same as the one at the university. University manuscripts are not on plain paper but follow a different format. While the original begins with a declaration, the leaked one had only questions,” said yet another official.

A week ago, there were allegations that the mathematics paper for repeater students was leaked on WhatsApp. However, after examining the messages that were circulated to students, the VTU vice chancellor had dismissed the rumours and had said re-exam would not be conducted.