# Double-Row Seating Reasoning Puzzle for IBPS PO — 27 Aug 2026

> 6-person double-row seating arrangement (2026-08-27) — Rohan, Aditi, Pooja, Karan, Vikram. 5 logic clues, one provable answer. Free IBPS PO & SSC practice.

Source: https://deducepuzzles.com/blog/2026-08-27-double-row-seating-puzzle

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Published: 2026-08-27 · Difficulty: hard · 5 clues · 6 people
Exams: IBPS PO · SBI PO · SSC CGL

## The puzzle

Rohan, Aditi, Pooja, Karan, Vikram, Uma — sit in two rows facing each other — Row 1 faces south, Row 2 faces north, with 3 seats per row. Using the clues below, work out the arrangement.

1. Aditi does NOT sit directly opposite Karan.
2. Uma sits immediately to the left of Aditi (both facing south).
3. Uma sits 2nd to the left of Pooja (both facing south).
4. Karan sits immediately to the left of Vikram (both facing north).
5. Rohan faces north.

## Answer

Row 1 (facing south): Karan, Vikram, Rohan. Row 2 (facing north): Pooja, Aditi, Uma.

R1S1: Karan · R1S2: Vikram · R1S3: Rohan · R2S1: Pooja · R2S2: Aditi · R2S3: Uma

## Step-by-step solution

1. Start: 720 ways to seat 6 people in two facing rows of 3.
2. Clue 5 — "Rohan faces north." narrows it to 360 possibilities. Board — North (W→E): _ · _ · _ | South (W→E): _ · _ · _
3. Clue 2 — "Uma sits immediately to the left of Aditi (both facing south)." narrows it to 48 possibilities. Board — North (W→E): _ · _ · _ | South (W→E): _ · _ · _
4. Clue 3 — "Uma sits 2nd to the left of Pooja (both facing south)." ⇒ Aditi → the south-facing row, column 2 (1 = west), Pooja → the south-facing row, column 1 (1 = west), Uma → the south-facing row, column 3 (1 = west) (6 possibilities left). Board — North (W→E): _ · _ · _ | South (W→E): Pooja · Aditi · Uma
5. Clue 4 — "Karan sits immediately to the left of Vikram (both facing north)." narrows it to 2 possibilities. Board — North (W→E): _ · _ · _ | South (W→E): Pooja · Aditi · Uma
6. Clue 1 — "Aditi does NOT sit directly opposite Karan." ⇒ Rohan → the north-facing row, column 3 (1 = west), Karan → the north-facing row, column 1 (1 = west), Vikram → the north-facing row, column 2 (1 = west) (1 possibility left). Board — North (W→E): Karan · Vikram · Rohan | South (W→E): Pooja · Aditi · Uma
7. Exactly one seating survives every clue — north row: Karan, Vikram, Rohan; south row: Pooja, Aditi, Uma.

## How to crack double-row seating puzzles faster

- Treat each row as an **independent linear arrangement**, then apply the cross-row clues last.
- "Faces" means the person opposite — use these clues as **cross-row constraints** to lock both rows at once.
- Draw two parallel rows on paper, fill each row independently, then check which cross-row pairs satisfy the remaining clues.
- "Immediately to the left/right of" applies **within the same row only** — cross-row facing is a different relationship.

## FAQ

### Who sits in the first seat of each row?

Karan, Vikram, Rohan sit in Row 1, and Pooja, Aditi, Uma sit in Row 2. Cross-reference with the facing clues to validate.

### How do you solve double-row seating arrangement puzzles?

Solve each row independently first using linear-seating techniques, then apply cross-row constraints (facing, diagonally opposite) to find valid pairs. Draw two parallel rows and eliminate combinations that violate any clue.

## Learn the method

This post is one worked example. The topic page for double-row seating carries the full method,
the clue-wording table and the mistakes that cost marks: https://deducepuzzles.com/reasoning/double-row-seating

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