A popular CBSE school in Chennai has landed in a controversy after a question paper referred to the farmers who protested against the farm laws during the Republic Day tractor rally as "miscreants" and "violent maniacs."
These politically-charged descriptions were part of a question in a Class 10 revision exam paper, according to an article in The News Minute.
The question paper was given to the students at DAV Boys school in Chennai.
The question read: “The diabolical violence that broke out in the national capital on Republic Day filled the hearts of the citizens with condemnation and abhorrence after the farm law protesters went on a rampage destroying public property and attacking police personnel in broad daylight. Write a letter to the editor of a daily newspaper in your city, condemning such terrible, violent acts of miscreants who fail to realise that country comes before personal needs and gains. Destroying public property, disgracing the national flag, and attacking police personnel are few of the various illegal offences committed, that can never be justified for any reason whatsoever.”
The question also asked students to “suggest a few measures to thwart such violent maniacs who act under external instigation.”
Several people on Twitter expressed outrage over the politically-loaded nature of the question.
This is a sample fm a Class X English paper of a popular Chennai school. The incident and the much larger farm bills issue is still being discussed but here this is being said 'violent maniacs under external instigation' pic.twitter.com/N27ooheHJV
— T M Krishna (@tmkrishna) February 19, 2021
I love how subtle that question is. Just gently, ever so gently, nudges the student in a particular direction and then lets them make up their own mind. Treats them like adults. It's just awesome. https://t.co/C7M0IfRROH
— Ramsu Sundararajan (@gs_ramsu) February 19, 2021
Teaching Hate & the Art of Making Fake News: A sample fm Class X English paper of a popular Chennai school.The jury is out on the issue, but the teacher who set this question paper has already declared the verdict. #FarmersProtests #TeachLove @tmkrishna @SundarrajanG @KisanSabha pic.twitter.com/hAKYkSI0oA
— NityanandJayaraman (@NityJayaraman) February 19, 2021
The question also reportedly evoked confusion among students who took the exam. An article in The New Indian Express quoted a student as saying, ""We had an option to answer another question. So I picked that. Some of my classmates told me that they simply elaborated on the same view expressed in the question because they did not have to think much."
On 26 January, the National Capital witnessed clashes between protesters and police during the tractor parade by farmers to press their demand of repealing three new farm laws.
source https://www.firstpost.com/india/chennai-schools-question-paper-terms-protesting-farmers-as-violent-maniacs-twitter-users-express-outrage-9326291.html
