# Square Seating Reasoning Puzzle for IBPS PO — 16 Sep 2026

> 8-person square table seating arrangement (corners and side-middles) (2026-09-16). 7 logic clues, one provable answer. Free IBPS PO & SSC practice.

Source: https://deducepuzzles.com/blog/2026-09-16-square-seating-puzzle

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Published: 2026-09-16 · Difficulty: hard · 7 clues · 8 people
Exams: IBPS PO · SBI PO · RBI Grade B

## The puzzle

Gauri, Geeta, Rohan, Imran, Tarun, Tanvi, Anjali, Nikhil — sit around a square table — 4 at the corners, 4 at the middle of the sides; each clue states its own facing convention — work out the seating order clockwise. Using the clues below, work out the arrangement.

1. Geeta sits directly opposite Tanvi.
2. Imran sits 3rd to the left of Tanvi (all facing the centre).
3. Rohan sits immediately to the left of Nikhil (all facing the centre).
4. Geeta sits next to Tarun.
5. Imran sits 2nd to the left of Gauri (all facing the centre).
6. Rohan sits at the middle of one of the sides.
7. Anjali sits 3rd to the left of Rohan (all facing the centre).

## Answer

Anjali, Imran, Geeta, Tarun, Nikhil, Rohan, Tanvi, Gauri (clockwise; position 1 is a corner, so odd positions are corners and even positions are side-middles).

Corner 1: Anjali · Side 2: Imran · Corner 3: Geeta · Side 4: Tarun · Corner 5: Nikhil · Side 6: Rohan · Corner 7: Tanvi · Side 8: Gauri

## Step-by-step solution

1. Start: 10080 distinct seatings (up to rotating the square frame) of 8 people — 4 at corners, 4 at the middle of the sides. Numbering clockwise from a corner, seats 1, 3, 5, 7 are the corners and 2, 4, 6, 8 the side-middles.
2. Clue 6 — "Rohan sits at the middle of one of the sides." narrows it to 5040 possibilities. Frame (clockwise from corner seat 1): _ · _ · _ · _ · _ · _ · _ · _
3. Clue 1 — "Geeta sits directly opposite Tanvi." narrows it to 720 possibilities. Frame (clockwise from corner seat 1): _ · _ · _ · _ · _ · _ · _ · _
4. Clue 4 — "Geeta sits next to Tarun." narrows it to 240 possibilities. Frame (clockwise from corner seat 1): _ · _ · _ · _ · _ · _ · _ · _
5. Clue 2 — "Imran sits 3rd to the left of Tanvi (all facing the centre)." narrows it to 24 possibilities. Frame (clockwise from corner seat 1): _ · _ · _ · _ · _ · _ · _ · _
6. Clue 3 — "Rohan sits immediately to the left of Nikhil (all facing the centre)." narrows it to 4 possibilities. Frame (clockwise from corner seat 1): _ · _ · _ · _ · _ · _ · _ · _
7. Clue 5 — "Imran sits 2nd to the left of Gauri (all facing the centre)." ⇒ Gauri → seat 8 (a side-middle), Geeta → seat 3 (a corner), Rohan → seat 6 (a side-middle), Imran → seat 2 (a side-middle), Tarun → seat 4 (a side-middle), Tanvi → seat 7 (a corner), Anjali → seat 1 (a corner), Nikhil → seat 5 (a corner) (1 possibility left). Frame (clockwise from corner seat 1): Anjali · Imran · Geeta · Tarun · Nikhil · Rohan · Tanvi · Gauri
8. Exactly one seating (up to rotation) survives every clue: Anjali, Imran, Geeta, Tarun, Nikhil, Rohan, Tanvi, Gauri clockwise, seat 1 being a corner.

## How to crack square seating puzzles faster

- Draw the square with **8 marked seats** — 4 corners, 4 side-middles — before reading a single clue.
- Place every "**sits at a corner / middle of a side**" clue first: each one halves the possibilities.
- Check WHO faces which way before any left/right clue — for an **outward-facing** sitter, left and right reverse.
- "Directly opposite" is always **4 seats away** and never depends on facing — corner faces corner, middle faces middle.

## FAQ

### What is the seating order around this square table?

The order clockwise is: Anjali, Imran, Geeta, Tarun, Nikhil, Rohan, Tanvi, Gauri, starting from a corner. Relative positions are what matter — any rotation of the square that keeps corners on corners is the same answer.

### How do you solve square table seating arrangement puzzles?

Mark the 8 seats (4 corners, 4 side-middles) and place the corner/middle clues first. Then apply left/right clues, checking each person's facing direction — a person facing outward has left and right reversed compared to someone facing the centre.

## Learn the method

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

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