The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) activists staged a massive demonstration in Bhubaneswar on Sunday alleging that the Odisha government has completely failed to manage the ongoing Matriculation examination in the state.
The protestors staged a demonstration and marched towards the official residence of Odisha School and Mass Education Minister Sudam Marndi and tried to stage gherao it. They raised slogans against the Minister and showed black flags.
However, the activists were prevented by police while trying to break the security barricades. Some of the agitators were detained by police.
The protestors also sought answers from the Minister about the reason behind the English question paper leak and demanded a high-level inquiry into the incident.
“English question paper was leaked before the examination in Keonjhar and Mayurbhanj districts at 8.36 am and went viral through WhatsApp. Later, it was revealed that the same question paper was prepared for the examination. Though the government has been ruling in Odisha for the last 23 years, different kinds of problems are continuously cropping up during all the examinations,” said a protestor.
“The main aim behind 5T is corruption. The question papers are getting leaked continuously for the last seven years. Odisha government is involved in this trade. Odisha Ministers have become the slaves of 5T Chairman VK Pandian who is from outside the State. We have come to seek an answer from the Minister in this regard. It is quite unfortunate that the Minister has not uttered a single word despite the big incident,” he added.
Another ABVP protestor warned the government that they would intensify their stir if a higher level inquiry into the incident will not be conducted and stern actions were not taken against the persons involved in it at the earliest.
“Though the State government is boasting about transparency, it is involved in corruption and cheating. Not a single word has been spoken about the question paper leak yet. The government should beg apology before the people of Odisha for the mismanagement in Matriculation examination and the culprits should be identified and stern action should be taken against them at the earliest,” said another protestor.