BENGALURU: A day after students who were writing the Common Entrance Test (CET) were allegedly asked to remove Janivaara (sacred thread) at Bidar and Shivamoga, the State government has sought concerned DCs as well as Karnataka Examination Authority (KEA) officials to give a comprehensive report, and they will take action against them.
Higher Education Minister MC Sudhakar has condemned the act and said the state government has taken this issue seriously and ensured action will be taken against them. While at an examination centre in Shivamogga, students wearing Janivaara or other sacred threads were asked to remove, at Bidar district, a boy reportedly left the centre without writing exams on Thursday.
Speaking to reporters on Friday, Minister Sudhakar said his colleagues were informed about this incident reported in the media. "I did not have information on Thursday as we were busy with a cabinet meeting. When I asked the Karnataka Examination Authority Executive Director, he said exams went smoothly on Thursday. He said they do not accept this.
"I have asked the Executive Director of KEA to give a complete report. Responsibility for conducting CET is given to the respective DCs. We have a set of protocols and they have to work as per these protocols. We do not have any rule that specifies candidates not to wear Janivaara or any sacred thread before entering examination hall '' he said. He said if such a case happened, they would take this issue seriously.
Further Minister said once he gets the report, he can speak with more clarity. "If this incident happened, it is too much. This incident tells the bad mindset of people. All of us need to respect the traditions and rituals of any caste and religion. I don't encourage such acts. We were told two incidents had been reported, but nowhere in the state we got any such reports. Such an incident had never happened before. The Akhila Karnataka Brahmana Mahasabha has objected and I understand their emotions".
Minister said once they get the comprehensive report on this incident and if they found it wrong, they shall take action. He also said there has been a report where the boy was sent back after he refused to remove the thread. If that is the case, we will check the alternative. When asked if they allowed the student who missed the exam to take exams, the Minister said he was getting the report. "We did not face this before, this is a completely new problem. This is a special case. We will discuss it with officials and we are aware of his future'' he added,