Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader Bikram Singh Majithia on Tuesday, 28 July alleged that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Punjab has compromised two additional examination processes, bringing the total number of major paper leak scandals under the current administration to at least six. Majithia demanded a High Court-monitored investigation into all examination irregularities in the state, and called for the immediate resignation of senior ministers.

Two New Exam Scams Alleged

Addressing reporters in Chandigarh, Majithia alleged that in the recruitment examination for Senior Assistants, 13 candidates had provided identical wrong answers across two separate question paper sets. He argued this could only occur if candidates had been coached on precisely which questions to answer incorrectly — a pattern he described as evidence of systemic corruption in the examination process.

In a second case, Majithia alleged that the Punjab State Rural Livelihood Mission examination had seen 30 marks allocated for interviews awarded arbitrarily. He said the irregularities were severe enough that the Punjab and Haryana High Court had intervened, constituted a committee, and summoned it to the judge's chamber to initiate corrective action. 'This is the level to which the system has been destroyed that judges are forced to intercede to treat the rot,' he said.

High Court Steps In on Multiple Fronts

Majithia further stated that the High Court had stayed the Excise Inspector examination paper due to large-scale irregularities, including fictitious names of institutions appearing in the list of selected candidates. He described this as yet another indicator that the examination apparatus in Punjab had been systematically undermined.

Notably, this is not the first time judicial intervention has been required. The pattern of court-level scrutiny across multiple exams — Senior Assistants, Rural Livelihood Mission, and Excise Inspector — points to what critics argue is a structural failure of oversight under the current government.

AAP's Own Admission Cited

Majithia also presented what he described as a post by the Chief Minister dated 13 March 2023 on social media platform X, in which the latter reportedly acknowledged that the Punjab State Teacher Eligibility Test (PSTET) had been leaked. He argued this admission directly contradicts the AAP government's public position that no paper leaks had occurred in Punjab.

He also cited the Pharmacy Officers examination paper leak, in which Bluetooth devices were allegedly used to transmit answers from inside the examination centre, as further proof that the integrity of the state's recruitment process had been comprehensively breached.

Demand for Resignations and Probe

'Only a High Court-monitored probe can provide justice to the five lakh affected students as well as ensure exemplary punishment to those guilty, including ministers like Harjot Bains,' Majithia said. He demanded the immediate resignation of Education Minister Harjot Bains, Health Minister Balbir Singh, and the Chief Minister, holding them accountable for the serial paper leaks.

With Punjab's recruitment examinations under sustained scrutiny and the High Court already intervening in multiple cases, the pressure on the AAP government to order an independent, court-supervised inquiry is likely to intensify in the days ahead.