Bhubaneswar, April 5: The higher education department has drawn flak for allowing a minister appear for the Plus Three examination from a college of which he is the governing body chairperson.

Sports and youth services minister Ramesh Chandra Majhi is pursuing degree course through distant education mode under Berhampur University. Incidentally, his examination centre — Panabeda College — falls not only in his Assembly constituency but was also founded by his father late Jadav Majhi.

By virtue of being the local MLA, he happens to be chairperson of the college’s governing body. Interestingly, the college has figured in the list of Plus Three exam centres for the first time this year.

The episode has caused a great deal of embarrassment for the higher education department that is already facing charges of negligence because of the Plus Two question paper leak.

The crime branch of Odisha police has already arrested six persons. Opposition parties and students’ organisations have since then been demanding resignation of higher education minister Badri Narayan Patra.

Raising the issue in the Assembly today, Congress legislator Santosh Singh Saluja alleged that the government had “fixed the exam centre to help Majhi”.

“The authorities have provided an exclusive room for Majhi to write the answers,” he said. Saluja said Majhi had applied to appear for the Plus Three exam last year but since Berhampur University did not make Panabeda College an exam centre, the he skipped the tests. This year, the university authorities succumbed to pressure and made the college an exam centre only to help Majhi, he alleged.

The Congress MLAs trooped into the well of the House seeking the minister’s head for what they termed “examination centre fixing.” Speaker Pradip Amat had to adjourn the House for 10 minutes because of the chaos.

Speaking to The Telegraph over phone from his constituency, Majhi said: “I had no role in fixing the exam centre. Berhampur University took the decision.”

Leader of Opposition Bhupinder Singh said the BJD had virtually blamed Congress MP Bhakta Charan Das for the Plus Two physics question paper leak on the ground that the MP had recommended the college as an exam centre from where the alleged leakage took place.

“What is their (BJD’s) stand now?” he asked.