The Central Board of Secondary Education postponed all board exams scheduled to be held on 2 April in Punjab in view of a bandh called by a number of Dalit organisations on 2 April to protest the alleged dilution of the SC/ST Act.
Exam will be held as per schedule in the rest of the country, including the Union Territory of Chandigarh. The date of the examinations in Punjab will be declared later.
The decision came after several Dalit organisations called for a 'bandh' on 2 April expressing concerns over the alleged "dilution" of SCs/STs (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
The board which has recently been facing a lot of flak for paper leaks and rescheduling of examinations, issued a statement saying it had received a letter from Punjab’s Director General of School Education who flagged security concerns in the state due to the call for bandh.
In view of the Bharat Bandh call on 2 April, the Punjab government has decided to suspend the services of public transport across the state tomorrow, PTI reported.
Chief Minister Amarinder Singh appealed to the people of the state, especially the members of the scheduled castes community, to maintain restraint and maintain law and order in the larger public interest.
The Supreme Court on 20 March diluted the provisions of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, in a bid to protect honest public servants discharging bona fide duties from being blackmailed with false cases under the Act.
The apex court said government servants should not be arrested without prior sanction and private citizens too should be arrested only after an inquiry under the law.
But Dalit organisations, including the Dalit Shoshan Mukti Manch, and some political parties fear the dilution of the provisions might lead to increase in violence against Dalits.
(With PTI inputs)
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