A purported image of the English question paper appeared on social media on Tuesday, the second day of class 10 examinations of the West Bengal board, around an hour ahead of the scheduled start of the test for the subject.

Denying that the question paper was leaked, the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education (WBBSE) which conducts the examination said that the paper which was circulated on social media was fake as it has no resemblance with the original one.

The incident occurred amid temporary suspension of internet services in some areas of the state to thwart cheating in the 'Madhyamik' examination.

The purported image of the questions of the second language English paper appeared in some WhatsApp groups of guardians at around 10.30 am, more than an hour before the examination began. A board official said the post originated in Malda district.

WBBSE President Kalyanmoy Ganguly told PTI that the circulated image was fake. "This is nothing but an act of mischief. There was no leak of the question paper. The exams passed off peacefully," he said.

The state administration has imposed a ban on internet services in select pockets of the state from 11 am to 3:15 pm on March 7, 8, 9, 11, 12, 14, 15, 16 the time and dates of the class 10 board exam.

The move was necessitated after the purported leak of Madhyamik examination question papers on social media platforms in 2019 and 2020 by some examination centres in Malda and Murshidabad districts. The examination could not be held last year due to the surge in COVID-19 cases.

"We are holding the offline exams after a year's break. Students could not sit for exams last year. We won't allow any attempt to disrupt the process," he said.

PTI