AIADMK leader OPS said that CBSE is bound to give advice to the question paper setters. (file)
Chennai:
NDA constituent and main opposition AIADMK in Tamil Nadu on Tuesday expressed regret over a controversial question in the CBSE Class 10 English paper which was slammed for gender stereotyping and demanded action against those responsible for it.
AIADMK coordinator O Panneerselvam said it is the duty of the CBSE to advise the question paper framers that the material should not be against the society, while controversial and “inciting violence” should be avoided.
“CBSE also has the responsibility to monitor whether the question paper is prepared accordingly or not,” Panneerselvam said in a party statement here.
In the Class 10 exam held on Saturday, the question paper had a comprehensible passage with sentences such as “Women’s emancipation destroyed parental authority over children” and “It was only by accepting the way of her husband”. That a mother could achieve obedience to “little ones”, among others.
Excerpts from the passage have previously gone viral on social media platforms, with users lashing out at the board for supporting “incorrect” and “regressive opinions” and the hashtag “#CBSEinsultswomen” on Twitter.
CBSE on Monday expressed regret and announced a committee to thoroughly review and strengthen the question paper setting process after the outcry, even as the board removed the part from the questionnaire and said that Full marks will be awarded to the students for this.
Mr. Panneerselvam, citing a Tamil proverb, said such action on the part of the board was “too late”. “I urge CBSE to initiate a thorough inquiry into the matter, take action against the erring people and ensure that such things do not happen again,” he said.
He said such controversial points create “some kind of confusion and discrimination” among the students.
The AIADMK leader pointed to various pro-women initiatives launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi as well as late Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa in the past and said the sentence in question “insults the freedom of women and those striving for it.” Invoking the poet Subramaniam Bharti, he said that he was a great proponent of women’s emancipation and that the controversial episode amounted to “crushing their dreams”.
(Except for the title, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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