Thiruvananthapuram: A former madrasa teacher from Kerala, who never had opportunity to attend a mainstream school, has proved that tenacity eventually triumphs. 28-year-old T Shahid, a native of Thiruvallur village in Kozhikode district, has cracked the UPSC examination in his sixth attempt and ranked 693.

The civil services exam, Shahid said, was a way to tell the society that madrasas are not a breeding ground of terrorism. “There may be stray issues or controversies, but madrasas in Kerala can contribute civil servants also,’’ he said.

Son of madrasa teacher Abdul Rahman Musaliyar and homemaker Sulekha, Shahid said he was forced to opt for a Muslim religious educational institution, run by an orphanage at Kappad in Kozhikode, due to financial crunch.

After 12 years of religious education, Shahid bagged the religious ‘hasni’ degree, a course which equipped him to become a madrasa teacher. While studying for hasni, he completed Class X and Class XII, and finally got a degree in English — all through distance courses.

Shahid said, his perspective towards life changed when he worked at the Malayalam daily Chandrika, managed by the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML). “Working as a journalist made me look at the world outside,” Shahid told.

Shahid opted Malayalam literature as an optional subject in UPSC. He said the coaching classes in Delhi, sponsored by IUML’s students’ wing MSF, helped him in cracking UPSC exam.

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Beed (PTI): A man entered an SSC exam centre in Ashti in Maharashtra's Beed district on Friday and assaulted a female student, triggering outrage among parents who sought an explanation from authorities over the security breach.

The incident happened at Doithan centre in Beedsangvi at 10:15am, just before the School Secondary Certificate exam was about to begin, an official said.

"He punched the girl and fled before those in the vicinity could overpower him. The parents of the girl, who were summoned to school, had a heated argument with authorities over the security breach. Others supported them," he said.

The girl, who was shaken from the incident, was allowed to answer the exam under supervision, the official added.

How did an outsider manage to come in without being checked and also flee after assaulting somebody, a group of parents asked.

An Ashti police station official said all efforts are underway to nab the accused.