Tight security and surveillance of cyber crime experts fell flat on Thursday when Malda district saw a re-run of the first day of the Higher Secondary examination in the district.

Around half-an-hour into the English language paper on Thursday, question paper of the subject started doing the rounds on social media accounts this morning amid claims of the West Bengal Council of Higher Secondary Education (WBCHSE) that ‘tight security’ has been put in place in the district for the exams.

Those leaking the question paper on Thursday adopted exactly the same method as in the case of the first day of the examination. The district inspector (DI) of schools (secondary), Malda, Tapas Kumar Biswas, however, claimed he did not receive any complaint regarding any question paper leak on Thursday.

Earlier too, he had said that there was ‘no proof’ that such a leak originated in Malda. WBCHSE that conducts the examination echoed the words of the DI and took out a Press statement where it was stated that the “exam process was peaceful and no untoward instances were reported”.

The council president, Mahua Das, also denied the charges that the question pa – per had come out before time, adding that the question only surfaced after an hour of the exam when examinees are not allowed to leave the hall.

Teachers, students and parents, not only in the district, but across the state, have already expressed concerns over such leaks. According to sources, a photo of the English language question paper started being circulated through Whatsapp around 10:18, which was suggestive that the photo was taken that time, about 18 minutes after the commencement of Thursday’s exam.

“We have not received any report from the district on Thursday. The security for the examination was beefed up and all went smoothly,” Biswas said. A leader of the All Bengal Teachers’ Association (ABTA), Malda, Monoranjan Das, said that the exams have been made a farce by the government.

“We warned the DI of schools several times and keeping secure the question paper could have been done, but all in vain,” he said.

Swapan Mondal, secretary of Bengal Teachers’ and Employees’ Association, speaking on the same lines, said: “In spite of repeated assurance from the council and from the government, it is found that the question papers of HS are coming out during the period. It is due to the laxity of the authority and the persons who are involved in conducting the exam. As a result of it, the students are mentally disturbed and pressurised. It may hamper the preparation in successive exams.”