A test containing 3 objective type of questions is conducted in a class. Each question has 4 options and only one option is the correct answer. No two students of the class have answered identically and no student has written all correct answers. If every student has attempted all the questions, then the maximum possible number of students who has written the test is

Apply the relevant identity from the chapter and substitute the values established in the previous step, keeping the original constraint in view.

Use the simplified expression to isolate the unknown, then plug the result back into the question setup to confirm the working is internally consistent.

Cross-check against a boundary or limiting case. Both the dimensional balance and the qualitative behaviour at the extreme should agree with the candidate answer.

Combine the steps above to identify the correct option. The remaining choices each fail at least one of the consistency, dimensional, or boundary checks.