An inquiry committee has exposed financial and administrative misconduct within the Board of Intermediate Education Karachi (BIEK), including manipulated exam results.
Established by the caretaker Chief Minister Sindh, the investigation, focusing on the 2021 to 2023 HSC Annual Examinations, revealed deliberate alterations in grades and the use of unauthorized answer sheets, particularly in the pre-medical and pre-engineering groups.
In the inquiry report now with the Chief Minister Secretariat, the committee’s findings detail instances where student marks were uniformly increased, bypassing security measures like the absence of examination controller signatures or QR codes on answer scripts, suggesting a systematic effort to favour certain candidates.
Moreover, the BIEK’s accounting practices have been criticized for not adhering to prescribed government standards, lacking transparent record-keeping, and violating financial rules by operating unauthorized bank accounts and making unapproved investments, raising concerns over data integrity and the possibility of financial mismanagement.
Procurement activities worth Rs28.9 million conducted by the BIEK also breached the Sindh Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (SPPRA) Rules, further emphasizing the board’s disregard for established financial regulations. Despite substantial examination expenditures, there’s no comprehensive account of how funds are allocated or spent, with reported fuel allowances for officials notably increasing without justification.
In defence, implicated officials argue that financial operations receive bi-annual approval from relevant committees, with oversight from appointed audit officers and adherence to procedural norms established since 1972. They attribute rising costs to inflation, maintaining that their financial practices are within legal boundaries.
This inquiry illuminates the governance issues plaguing the BIEK and calls into question the integrity of educational assessments and financial stewardship within one of Sindh’s key educational institutions.
