Mamata Banerjee slams EC as Class 12 Bengal board exams rescheduled due to byelections
Kolkata(PTI): Slamming the Election Commission for holding bypolls to Asansol Lok Sabha seat and Ballygunge assembly constituency during the Class 12 West Bengal board examinations, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday said the higher secondary tests had to be rescheduled due to this.
She also accused the EC of working at the behest of the BJP and not considering the state board exams while announcing the date for bypolls.
The schedule for the Class 12 state board examinations, which were supposed to be held between April 2 and 26, was revised, Banerjee said, adding that the tests will now end on April 27.
There will be "no examination from April 6 to 15" as the bypolls will be held on April 12 and votes counted on April 16.
The first language test will be held on April 2 and the second language on April 4, Banerjee said. The vocational examinations of higher secondary will be held on April 5.
"The EC does not give importance to by-elections and works at the behest of the BJP. As the date for bypolls was announced, the central forces would start arriving soon. They will stay at several school buildings where polling booths will also be set up. Many of these educational facilities would also be used for HS examination centres. So, we have to rework dates of the tests. I apologise to the students and the parents as well," Banerjee said.
She also asked why the bypolls to the two seats were not conducted along with the recent assembly elections in Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Goa, Manipur and Uttarakhand.
"Had the byelections been conducted along with the recent assembly elections in the five states, students would not have to face this problem," she said.
Banerjee said the chief secretary had written to the EC on this issue, but the poll body had said it would hold byelections within six months after the seats fell vacant.
"They might be correct, but they should have announced the date keeping in mind the board exam schedule," the CM said, adding that "the timing of the by-elections is also coinciding with a few festivals and Bengali new year".
"The EC should have checked with the examination routine. We have to see everything so that the HS test dates are not overlapped with the Joint Entrance Examinations," she said.
Notably, the West Bengal Council for Higher Secondary Education had revised some of its Class 12 exam dates as they were coinciding with the JEE (Main).
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Saffron shawls not allowed in schools in K'taka, clarifies CM Siddaramaiah
Mysuru (Karnataka) (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday clarified that saffron shawls would not be allowed in educational institutions under the state government’s order on religious symbols, while practices already in existence such as hijab, turbans, rudraksha beads and sacred threads (Janeu) would continue to be permitted.
Speaking to reporters in Mysuru, the Chief Minister clarified that those religious attire which are in practice will be allowed.
The Karnataka government on Wednesday passed an order allowing students to wear Hijab, sacred thread, Shivadhara, Rudraksha in schools. The order scrapped the BJP government’s 2022 order, banning Hijab in government schools following the Hijab versus saffron shawl controversy.
The opposition flayed the move and termed it "appeasement politics".
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A section of Hindu right wing organisations even threatened to wear saffron shawls in the schools.
Now the Chief Minister has clarified that saffron shawls will not be permitted.
“Saffron shawls are not allowed. Those shawls cannot be worn. Turbans, sacred thread, Shiva dhara, rudraksha, and hijab can also be worn,” Siddaramaiah told reporters.
“See, it is not just the hijab. People can also wear sacred threads, Shivadhara rudraksha beads — everyone can wear things according to their beliefs. This is allowed up to Class 12, whether it is high school, college or primary school. It applies to all.”
Asked whether saffron turbans representing saffron identity would be permitted, the Chief Minister said only practices already in existence would be allowed and no new practices could be introduced.
“When we say turbans, we mean practices that already exist. Nothing new can be introduced. Only those practices and beliefs that already exist till now are allowed,” he said.
Responding to questions on Prime Minister Narendra Modi reducing his convoy to conserve diesel, Siddaramaiah said such measures would only have a temporary effect. “What the Prime Minister has said is not the right step. Instead, it would be better to speak with other countries and bring awareness and consciousness among them,” he said.
Replying to questions on the controversy surrounding the NEET examination, Siddaramaiah criticised the conduct of the exam and said students should not suffer because of lapses in the system. “Look, we conducted CET, and they introduced NEET. If they fail to conduct it properly, what will happen to the students who studied hard and wrote the exam? What about their future?” he asked.
