Four teachers have been suspended by a school in Kannur, Kerala where a candidate was asked to remove her bra in public minutes before the National Eligibility and Entrance Test (NEET) on Sunday, NDTV reported.
The teachers, who were the invigilators when the NEET exam was being conducted in TISK English Medium school, asked the girl to remove her bra because the hooks are made of metal. They have been identified as Sheena, Shafeena, Bindu and Shahina.
In addition, the state government has ordered a police investigation into the incident. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Tuesday told the Assembly that the complaint by the student, who was allegedly asked to remove her bra, will be probed by the police.
Authorities had issued a strict dress code to prevent cheating in the exam, with list of prohibited articles including pieces of clothing like long sleeves, dark clothes and brooches. Bras, however, don’t find mention in this year’s list.
CBSE Calls Incident ‘Consequence of Overzealousness’
Responding to the incident, the CBSE on Tuesday called the incident the “consequence of overzealousness".
The CBSE, which conducts the NEET for admission to MBBS and BDS courses, defended the stringent dress code as a measure to “secure the sanctity” of the high-stakes examination.
“The incident reported at Kannur is unfortunate and a consequence of the overzealousness of a few persons involved in the process. However, inconvenience caused to the students inadvertently in the process is regretted by the Board," CBSE spokesperson Rama Sharma said.
Several Faced ‘Harrowing Experiences’
The anguished candidate told mediapersons after attempting the exam – conducted for admission to undergraduate medical courses in government and private medical colleges in the country – how she was asked by the examination centre's officials to remove her innerwear.
“My daughter went inside the centre, only to return later and hand me her top innerwear,” said her mother.
Another candidate, who was wearing a pair of jeans, was asked to remove a pocket as well as metal buttons from the clothing.
Her father said, “She was wearing jeans. Since it had pockets and metal buttons, they needed to be removed. I went to a shop about three km away from the exam centre and bought a new dress for her after getting the shop opened.”
Those living in the vicinity of the school where the NEET centre was set up came forward to help candidates by giving them suitable clothes to wear.
‘This is Humiliation’: State Mahila Congress President
“I know of a Muslim family which gave six tops to candidates to wear. Even more shocking was the fact that authorities did not permit anyone to wear full-sleeved top. Those wearing such sleeves had to cut it to make it short-sleeved,” said another harried parent.
“The ordeal is over but it's debatable how many female candidates would have been able to write the exam properly after they were subjected to so much humiliation. I will write to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan to seek action against those responsible,” said state Mahila Congress President Bindhu Krishna.
The Centre Board of Secondary Education organised NEET 2017 on Sunday in as many as 104 cities across the country, for which more than 11 lakh aspirants had registered.
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)