The year 2025 has witnessed a worrying rise in examination paper leak cases across India, affecting recruitment tests, board exams, and departmental promotions. From school-level examinations to competitive
recruitment tests, several exams had to be cancelled or postponed. The paper leaks led to several arrests, investigations, and widespread outrage among students and aspirants.
Before the year winds up, here is a look at some of the major paper leak incidents reported this year:
Odisha ANM Examination Cancelled
The Auxiliary Nurse Midwifery (ANM) examination in Odisha was cancelled after its question paper was allegedly leaked nearly three hours before the test. The issue was raised in the Assembly by MLA CS Raazen Ekka during a discussion on unemployment. According to him, the leak occurred in the Malkangiri and Bolangir districts, where second-year students were scheduled to appear for the exam. Following the revelation, Director of Medical Education and Training (DMET) Prof. Santosh Mishra announced the cancellation of the examination.
UKSSSC Recruitment Exam Postponed
Scheduled for October 5, the Uttarakhand Subordinate Services Selection Commission (UKSSSC) postponed its recruitment examination after reports of a paper leak surfaced. The main accused, Khalid Malik, was arrested soon after the incident. During interrogation, Malik reportedly confessed that he had hidden his mobile phone inside the exam centre a day prior to the test. He allegedly used the phone to click pictures of three pages of the question paper from the washroom and sent them to his sister.
JAC Class 10 Science And Hindi Exam
The Jharkhand Academic Council (JAC) cancelled the Class 10 Hindi and Science examinations, scheduled to be held on February 20, after alleged paper leaks surfaced on social media. The council later announced a retest. Jharkhand Police arrested 10 people in connection with the leak. The Class 10 and 12 board examinations later begun on February 11 under heightened security measures.
HPSC Assistant Professor Exam Cancelled
The Haryana Public Service Commission (HPSC) cancelled the written examination for Assistant Professor (Hindi) posts following serious allegations of a paper leak, technical glitches, and security lapses. Conducted at multiple centres in Panchkula, the exam reportedly faced problems related to printing, sealing of question papers, and overall examination management.
Assam Board Class 11 Exams Scrapped
The Assam State School Education Board (ASSEB) cancelled all Class 11 examinations scheduled between March 24 and 29, covering 36 subjects, after reports of question paper leaks at multiple locations. The decision came after the leak of the Higher Secondary first-year Mathematics paper scheduled for March 21. Authorities also filed a police complaint and suspended the affiliation of 15 private schools across 10 districts for breaking the seal of the mathematics question paper before the scheduled time.
Haryana Class 12 English Paper Leak
The Class 12 English examination conducted by the Haryana School Education Board was leaked from an exam centre in Tapkan village, Nuh district. Three students and two supervisors were arrested for allegedly clicking the picture of the paper using mobile phones. According to police, the centre in charge filed a complaint stating that supervisors had ignored repeated instructions to close classroom windows, but they left them open, facilitating the leak.
Railway Exam Paper Leak
In March 2025, Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) busted a major case involving East Central Railway (ECR) officials leaking an exam paper for Loco Pilots in Mughal Sarai, which led to the arrest of 26 railway officials. The accused included a senior divisional electrical engineer (Operations) and other railway staff who allegedly collected money in exchange for the leaked papers. During raids conducted on March 3–4, as many as 17 loco pilots were caught red-handed with copies of the question paper. The CBI also seized cash worth Rs 1.17 crore.
