PESHAWAR: Dozens of students from private colleges blocked the busy Grand Trunk Road in the Hashtnagri area here on Friday, complaining they`re not `allowed to cheat` in the ongoing intermediate examinations despite having paid money.

The protest lasted around two hours, troubling road users in the scorchingheat.

People remained stuck in their vehicles due to road closure, while others walked long distances.Police fired tear gas shells to disperse protesters. However, no one was hurt.

The students had begun gathering outside the Government Post Graduate Degree College after their exam was over.

They marched in a procession and blocked both sides of the GT Road, shouting slogans against invigilators and the Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education Peshawar.

An official at the Hashtnagri police station told Dawn that the students claimed the administrations of their respective private colleges had collected money from them for `payment` to the invigilation staff to allow cheating during the higher secondary school certificate exam.

They, however, complainedthat the board assigned them an examination centre at the Government Post Graduate Degree College instead of their own colleges and thus, denying them the `promised opportunity to cheat in the exam`.

During the protest, the students also attacked invigilators and snatched answer sheets from them. They also tore up answer sheets of students from the privately-owned Brilliant College.

An invigilator told Dawn on condition of anonymity that he along with his colleagues were attacked when they were on the way to the BISE Peshawar`s camp office at the Government High School City No 2 to submit the answer sheets submitted by candidates.

A BISE official said that the education board had divided private and government col-leges into clusters for examination.

He said that under that system, combined examination centres were established for students from both public and private colleges in a bid to prevent cheating.

The official said that in the past, there used to be separate examination halls for public and private colleges.

He, however, said that as widespread cheating was reported at private colleges, the board introduced the cluster system as a preventive measure, merging students from public and private educational institutions for the intermediate examination.

The official said that each cluster included 10 government and private colleges.

Following the protest, Peshawar commissioner RiazMehsud chaired a meeting, which decided that the Pakistan Studies paper would be rescheduled for May 29 for Brilliant College students, whose answer sheets were snatched.

It also ordered registration of criminal cases against those involved.

The commissioner, who is also the acting chairman of BISE Peshawar, directed the additional deputy commissioner (general) to immediately investigate the incident and ensure strict action against the culprits.

He asked the education board to retake the exam for 176 students of Hall No 276 on May 29.

Mr Mehsud said that those who were behind the incident would be exposed and given exemplary punishment.