Hundreds of aspirants boycotted the Karnataka Police Constable exam on Sunday following reports of late paper distribution and material mismatches. The incident, involving thousands of candidates across 800 centers, has led to public protests and demands for a re-examination at the affected venue.
The recruitment drive for 3,991 Civil Police Constable positions in Karnataka faced significant hurdles on Sunday as candidates at a center in Vijayapura district's Tikota region staged a protest. The disruption began after reports of administrative delays and discrepancies in examination materials, prompting many aspirants to boycott the test in that location.
Reported Exam Irregularities
Candidates at the Tikota center alleged that the distribution of question papers, which was scheduled to commence at 10:30 AM, was delayed by approximately 30 minutes. The situation worsened when many students reported a mismatch between their question papers and the required Optical Mark Recognition (OMR) sheets. In some cases, candidates stated they were provided with incomplete sets of examination documents, preventing them from completing the test as required by the state's examination rules.
Following these issues, some candidates left the examination hall with their papers, which resulted in authorities denying them re-entry for the remainder of the session. While the exam was conducted across more than 800 centers in the state for approximately 4.54 lakh candidates, officials noted that the majority of centers proceeded with the exam after supervisors clarified the standard procedures.
Official Oversight and Next Steps
Following the unrest, senior local authorities, including Deputy Commissioner K. Anand and Superintendent of Police Laxman Nimbargi, visited the Tikota examination center to assess the situation and manage the crowd. The protesters, many of whom noted the emotional and time-related pressure of this being their final attempt at the recruitment exam, are now formally calling for the cancellation of the test at the affected center and a request for a re-examination.
As of now, the primary concern for the authorities remains addressing the validity of the results from the affected center compared to the rest of the state. Investors and stakeholders following the state's governance and administrative efficiency may monitor whether the government announces a re-test or an inquiry into the administrative failures at these specific centers. The next important update will be any official notification regarding the status of the affected candidates and potential rescheduling of the examination for that location.