The Pushkar Singh Dhami government Saturday cancelled the controversial Graduate-level Uttarakhand Subordinate Services Selection Commission (UKSSSC) examination following statewide protests over question paper leak.
The decision to quash the UKSSSC exam, held to fill vacancies in various departments, was taken following submission of the one-member inquiry commission report by former High Court judge UC Dhyani.
Following submission of the report, a statement issued by the UKSSSC, said: “In order to maintain the integrity, confidentiality, transparency and credibility of the examination, the commission has decided that it will be appropriate to cancel the examination held on September 21, 2025. The examination stands cancelled and it’s proposed that re-examination will be held after three months.”
Officials in the Chief Minister’s office informed that the commission, constituted by the state government to investigate the paper leak, had recommended quashing the exam.
The Dhami government missed no time in deciding to cancel the exam following submission of the report by Justice Dhyani. It’s significant that the state government was also under pressure to take a decision as the youth who protested against the paper leak had given a 10-day deadline, ending on Saturday.
Speaking on the report, Chief Minister Dhami said, “The Commission was able to submit its report after largescale public hearings and collecting opinions of the candidates and other stakeholders. This is commendable. The government will examine the report and make a decision in the interest of the candidates.”
He said a recommendation for a CBI probe has already been made to ensure complete impartiality in the matter.
The government will keep the sanctity, transparency and credibility of the recruitment examinations in the state, he said, adding necessary steps will be taken to prevent even an iota of irregularity in all future recruitment examinations.
It must be recalled that three pages of the question paper were leaked from a center in Haridwar within half an hour of starting the examination. It subsequently went viral on social media as nearly 1.05 lakh candidates took the examination.
The main accused, Khalid Malik, allegedly managed to sneak a mobile phone into the exam hall. He photographed three pages of question paper and sent them to his sister Sabia who forwarded the pictures to another person for solving the questions.
The leak led to widespread protests across the state, particularly in Dehradun with students demanding the immediate cancellation of the exam and a probe by the CBI.
Seeing mass protests, the Dhami government formed an SIT team to investigate the matter and constituted a single-member inquiry commission, headed by Justice Dhyani.
Meanwhile, as the students’ agitation went on relentlessly for more than a week, Dhami visited the protest site in Dehradun on the eve of Dussehra and announced a CBI probe. He had also assured that cancellation of examination will be decided by the inquiry commission.