REET 2022: Rajasthan Education Minister denies paper leak allegations

Talking to journalists in Bikaner, Kalla said, “Had the paper been leaked, it would have been before (the examination). The paper has been conducted and it (the photo) is going viral after the exam.”

“Nothing went viral before the paper; it means that there was no paper out. Now if someone on the inside quietly tears off two pages (of the question paper) and makes them go viral…the entire exam was held in a transparent manner,” he said.

Late on Sunday, BJP’s Rajya Sabha MP Kirodi Lal Meena had shared photos of some pages of the question paper, asking how the question paper, which was meant to be returned by the candidates to the examiners found its way to social media.

Denying any leak, Kalla said that, “Under a committee headed by the Chief Secretary at the state level, and with DMs (District Magistrates) and SPs (Superintendent of Police) at the district level, the exams were conducted in a transparent manner. For that I would like to thank the people of Rajasthan and the students.”

He pointed out that, “Following the REET paper leak last time, Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot came out with a strict law with 10 year jail and fine up to Rs 10 crore. These steps led to fear among the gangs which indulge in cheating, that they may have to pay up more than they earn. This also supported immensely (in smooth conduct of examination).”

The Rajasthan Eligibility Examination for Teachers or REET is the eligibility test for the direct recruitment of primary and upper primary government school teachers in Rajasthan. The REET held in September last year was for around 31,000 posts, for which more than 16 lakh candidates were in the fray. Qualifying REET is the basic prerequisite for applying in these posts. The exam is conducted by the Rajasthan Board of Secondary Education, which also has the responsibility of most of the exam-related arrangements including setting the question papers.

Last year, the Congress government in Rajasthan faced a major embarrassment after police investigations found that the question paper REET, which was held on September 26 last year, was leaked two days before the examination. This happened despite the state government shutting down internet services in various locations across the state to prevent irregularities. The police probe revealed that a question paper was stolen from an office of the state education department and it was thereafter leaked, and that the accused have received at least Rs.1.22 crore in exchange of the paper.

After the police probe, the BJP had aggressively raised the issue and even demanded a CBI inquiry in the case earlier this year.

Then in March this year, the State Assembly passed a Bill with strict provisions of punishment up to 10-year imprisonment and penalties in the form of fine up to Rs 10 crore and attachment/ confiscation of property, to deter cheating in public examinations.

The Rajasthan Public Examination (Measures for Prevention of Unfair Means in Recruitment) Bill, 2022, had noted: “The leakage of question papers not only betrays the trust of the public, but the state, too, suffers substantial administrative cost when examinations have to be called off. A fair and reasonable process of selection to posts, subject to the norm of equality of opportunity under Article 16 (1) of the Constitution, is a constitutional requirement. A fair and reasonable recruitment process is a fundamental requirement of Article 14 as well.”

In his budget speech, Gehlot had also announced the constitution of an anti-cheating cell within the Special Operations Group to prevent irregularities in entrance examinations.