Teen fails to attend board hearing, banned for five years from taking SSC exams

The 16-year-old student who was arrested for copying and carrying an algebra SSC question paper at Kandivli's YB Chavan School on March 11 has been banned from appearing for the Secondary School Certificate (SSC) board examination for five years. The decision was taken on Tuesday in Pune by Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education (MSBSHSE) officials after the student failed to attend the board hearing twice.

The boy was caught copying and carrying one set of the maths paper with him. The Kandivli (West) police detained him and filed an FIR. The case was later transferred to the crime branch. The boy's father, a constable attached to Charkop police station, too was arrested and presented in court for his alleged involvement in providing the question paper to his son. The boy's father has been suspended and the court case against him is ongoing.

MSBSHSE chairman, Mumbai divisional board, Laxmikant Pande said, "Yesterday, there was a meeting of board officials in Pune. The student was called twice by the Pune board officials for the hearing to know his side of the story, but he remained absent both times. So it was decided to ban him from taking his SSC board exams for five years. The decision was not taken on the basis of the report from a three-member committee but because the boy failed to attend the hearing twice despite being called."