Row Seating Reasoning Puzzle for IBPS PO — 4 Nov 2026
The puzzle
Manish, Yash, Esha, Lata, Rahul, Sanjay — sit in a single row, all facing north — seat 1 is the far-left end and seat 6 is the far-right end. Using the clues below, work out the arrangement.
- Lata sits immediately to the left of Sanjay.
- Exactly 3 people sit between Rahul and Sanjay.
- Yash sits immediately to the left of Rahul.
- Yash sits immediately to the right of Esha.
- Manish and Lata do NOT sit next to each other.
Question: Determine the arrangement.
Reveal the answer
Answer: Lata, Sanjay, Manish, Esha, Yash, Rahul (left to right).
- Start: 720 possible left-to-right orders of 6 people.
- Clue 1 — "Lata sits immediately to the left of Sanjay." narrows it to 120 possibilities. Board (left → right): _ · _ · _ · _ · _ · _
- Clue 3 — "Yash sits immediately to the left of Rahul." narrows it to 24 possibilities. Board (left → right): _ · _ · _ · _ · _ · _
- Clue 4 — "Yash sits immediately to the right of Esha." narrows it to 6 possibilities. Board (left → right): _ · _ · _ · _ · _ · _
- Clue 2 — "Exactly 3 people sit between Rahul and Sanjay." ⇒ Manish → seat 3, Yash → seat 5, Esha → seat 4, Lata → seat 1, Rahul → seat 6, Sanjay → seat 2 (1 possibility left). Board (left → right): Lata · Sanjay · Manish · Esha · Yash · Rahul
- Exactly one order survives every clue: Lata, Sanjay, Manish, Esha, Yash, Rahul (left to right).
How to crack row seating puzzles faster
- Lock the ends first — any "far-left / far-right" clue fixes a seat instantly.
- Convert "immediately to the left/right" into adjacent pairs and slide them along.
- "Exactly k people between" gives a fixed gap — try it at each valid position.
- Eliminate, don't guess: each clue should cut the possibilities until one order remains.
FAQ
Who sits in the middle (seat 3) in this seating arrangement?
Manish sits in seat 3. The full order: Lata, Sanjay, Manish, Esha, Yash, Rahul (left to right).
How do you solve linear seating arrangement puzzles for bank exams?
Fix direct positions first (far-left / far-right ends), then apply relative clues (left of, immediately left, exactly k between). Eliminate impossible orders until a single arrangement satisfies every clue.
Learn the method for this puzzle type
This post is one worked example. The topic page for linear seating arrangement carries the full method, the clue-wording table, the mistakes that cost marks and more practice questions.
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