The state secondary education board has decided to suspend a teacher from a school in Malda for allegedly taking pictures of the Madhyamik life science paper on Wednesday and trying to send the picture to someone through WhatsApp from the school's washroom, a board official said in Calcutta.

The additional venue supervisor caught the teacher as he was about to send the pictures, the official said.

Earlier, in Madhyamik and higher secondary examinations, some examinees had their entire examinations cancelled for entering the centre with mobile phones or taking pictures of the question paper and sending them via WhatsApp, seeking answers.

A board official said that it was the first time that a schoolteacher was being held accused of an offence of such nature.

The accused is a teacher at BSS High School in Malda's Mathurpur.

"According to our rules, the teacher should not have any copy of the question. In this case, a question paper was found in his possession. He took pictures of the questions and went to the washroom with the intention of sending the questions via WhatsApp. The additional venue supervisor caught him," the board official said.

Board president Ramanuj Ganguly said: "We have sought CCTV footage from the examination centre."

On February 6, the board had suspended a teacher of the same school in Malda on charges of writing answers and dictating them to examinees during the history paper of Madhyamik.

The teacher was suspended on charges of "serious violation of examination rules".

An education department official said that they were "stunned to learn" that another teacher at the same Malda school had violated rules on Wednesday.

"If the allegations are found to be true, their jobs could be terminated," a board official said.