The shrill cries of ‘we want justice’ pierced the serene morning air at Jantar Mantar today as hundreds of students gathered here, protesting against the re-examination of Class 10 Mathematics and Class 12 Economics papers.

Holding placards, with slogans like ‘Stop playing hit and trial with our lives’ and ‘It’s not the students who need a retest, it’s the system’, the students rued how they have been left “traumatised” after hearing the news of re-examination. Many students claimed that almost all the papers had been leaked a day before the examinations and demanded that if a re-examination is to be held, it should be held for all the subjects.

Bhavika Yadav, a Class 10 student of St Thomas School, said, “We were shocked after hearing the news of the re-examination. Why should we suffer just because a handful of students got the leaked paper before the examination?”

Her friend, Ojasvy Chamdhok, echoed similar sentiments. “We have been under pressure right from the beginning of the session. We were relieved after giving the exam but it was just for one-and-a-half hours that we breathed the sigh of relief. Later we learnt from various news channels that we will have to appear for a re-examination which means studying the entire syllabus again,” she added.

The students said the Board should take the accountability for the paper leak. “It is impossible that the Board was not aware of the leakage. They had been denying right from the word go the news emerged but, it seems, they had just been pretending to be in the dark about the paper leak. They should have cancelled the papers in the morning,” another student said.

Rahul, a Class 12 student of Kendriya Vidyalaya, said, “All the papers were available a day before the exams. Our friends had offered to sell the papers for Rs 2,000 but we did not believe them. After we appeared for the exam, we did realise that the papers were exactly the same that were being circulated among various groups. If a re-examination has to happen, it should be for all the subjects.”

Rohit Mogha, who runs a private coaching centre in Janakpuri, said the re-examination would put additional pressure on Class 12 students, who are busy preparing for entrance examinations of various courses like engineering, medical and law. “Many of my students are worried as to how they will manage the preparation for their entrance exams along while preparing for the Board’s re-examination. Many of my students had sent me the leaked Economics paper a day before the exam but I had asked them that these were just the rumours, not to be believed. It seems they were not rumours, but the truth,” he added.

In the wake of reports claiming paper leaks, the CBSE had announced re-examination yesterday for the two papers. The Crime Branch of Delhi Police is investigating the alleged leak of Class 12 Economics and Class 10 Mathematics papers after registering two separate cases in the matter.

Related Topics