Lucknow, Jan 7 (IANS) Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has ordered the cancellation of the Assistant Professor recruitment examination conducted in April 2025 by the Uttar Pradesh Education Service Selection Commission (UPESSC), citing serious irregularities and compromise in the exam's integrity due to a question paper leak.
The decision comes after a detailed investigation by the Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF), which uncovered a gang involved in leaking and selling question papers, an official press release said on Wednesday.
The exam, held on April 16 and 17, 2025, under advertisement number 51, has been scrapped to protect the future of aspiring candidates and uphold transparency in the state's recruitment processes.
According to the press note, the STF received intelligence about malpractices and illegal monetary transactions linked to the exam. On April 20, 2025, three individuals — Mehboob Ali, Baijnath Pal, and Vinay Pal — were arrested for preparing and distributing leaked papers.
Mehboob Ali, identified as the confidential assistant to the then Chairperson of the Commission, confessed to obtaining question papers during the moderation process and selling them to candidates, it said.
The investigation, supported by mobile data analysis and informant networks, revealed that the exam's fairness had been severely compromised. To maintain impartiality, the former Chairperson was asked to resign. An FIR was registered under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023.
Emphasising his commitment to fair and corruption-free recruitments, CM Yogi Adityanath directed the UPESSC to re-conduct the examination "as soon as possible" in a completely transparent manner.
"The government is fully dedicated to ensuring independent, fair, and transparent selection processes," the release stated, highlighting the move as a step to safeguard the "bright future" of candidates. This cancellation underscores the Yogi government's zero-tolerance policy towards exam malpractices, amid ongoing efforts to maintain sanctity in public recruitments across the state. Candidates are advised to await further announcements from the UPESSC regarding the revised schedule.
--IANS
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