Menstruating Class VIII student made to write exam outside classroom in Coimbatore private school
Principal suspended
Coimbatore (Tamil Nadu), Apr 10 (PTI): A principal of a matriculation school here was placed under suspension allegedly over an incident of the school's Class VIII student, in her first menstrual cycle, writing the annual exam sitting outside her classroom.
After a video of the girl, said to hail from Scheduled Caste community, writing her last exam on the steps on the school premises, went viral on Wednesday, a police team led by Additional Superintendent of Police, Pollachi, Shrishti Singh, held enquiries.
Following the viral video, the school education department authorities sought an explanation from the management of the school in Senguttaipalayam near Pollachi in the district.
"A departmental inquiry has been conducted against the private school. The school principal has been suspended," School Education Minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi informed.
In a post on the social media platform 'X', the minister said: "Oppression against children in any form cannot be tolerated. Dear student, you are not alone! We stand with you."
The girl’s father told reporters that his daughter attained puberty last week and she wanted to go to school to write her final exams scheduled this week.
"We requested the school administration to provide a separate table and chair to help her write the exam. But, the school did not make the arrangement. She was made to sit on the steps outside her classroom and write," he said.
The girl experienced pain in her leg as she had to sit continuously for over two hours on the steps, he added.
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More than fifty KAS candidates miss exam after last-minute hall ticket distribution by KPSC: Report
Bengaluru: Over 50 candidates slated to appear for the Karnataka Administrative Service (KAS) mains exam were unable to take the test on Saturday following a last-minute and poorly communicated hall ticket distribution process by the Karnataka Public Service Commission (KPSC).
The candidates are now demanding the state government and the High Court of Karnataka to intervene and ensure justice to them, as reported by The New Indian Express on Sunday.
The confusion began after the Karnataka High Court allowed around 120 aspirants—previously left out because of some confusion in the Kannada translation of a question paper for the preliminary exam—to appear for the mains. Acting on the court’s directive, the KPSC instructed these candidates to submit their applications and fees by 3:00 p.m. on May 2 and collect their hall tickets in person from its Bengaluru office at 5:30 p.m. the same day.
However, the KPSC issued a fresh notification at 9:40 p.m. on Friday—just hours before the exam—stating that hall tickets would be available only until 12:00 a.m. With the exam scheduled for 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, this sudden change caused significant confusion and distress among candidates, the report added.
Several candidates rushed to the KPSC office, only to be stopped at the gate. When they protested, the police reportedly resorted to a lathicharge to control the crowd. Despite this, candidates continued to protest until they were allowed entry to collect their hall tickets one by one—some staying at the KPSC office until as late as 4:00 a.m.
While KPSC maintained that it complied with the court’s order, candidates argued that the last-minute communication and lack of clarity were unfair and exclusionary. They also questioned why only a limited group of candidates—those part of the court petition—were allowed to appear, despite over 5,000 aspirants having raised concerns. “There are 65,000 Kannada-medium candidates. If only a few are helped, is that the social justice promised by the chief minister?” TNIE quoted one candidate as saying.
Meanwhile, several candidates requested the governor to stop the exam immediately to prevent injustice to them. Additionally, allegations of bias and result manipulation have also surfaced. A candidate from Bidar accused the commission of intentionally manipulating the process to favour certain candidates. “If KSEAB can conduct SSLC and PU exams smoothly, why can't KPSC? Unless there’s something to hide,” he remarked.
