CET 'janivara' row: Bengaluru college staff suspended, booked after students asked to remove sacred thread

BENGALURU: A day after staff at Krupanidhi PU College allegedly asked Common Entrance Test (CET) aspirants to remove their ‘janivara' (sacred thread) before entering the exam hall, the college has suspended three employees pending inquiry.

Following the controversy, which took a political turn and led to the filing of a formal police complaint, the institution suspended faculty member Sudheer D, second division clerk A Sarita, and attender Girija.

All three were later booked by Madivala police under Sections 299 and 302 of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for allegedly hurting religious sentiments. "We've registered a case based on the complaint made by Raghu Bheem Rao, a private company employee and parent of a CET aspirant," a senior police officer said, adding that the accused were summoned for questioning Friday evening and subsequently arrested.

Police said the personnel, during interrogation, claimed they were enforcing exam guidelines. "They claimed they were only asking students to remove any physical materials on their bodies that could become a hindrance. During that time, a few students asked whether they had to remove the sacred thread. We told them to remove everything as per the guidelines; we did not mean to harm anyone's feelings," an officer said, quoting their statements.

The issue snowballed after media reports, with several religious and cultural organisations raising objection. Leader of the opposition R Ashoka alleged that the Siddaramaiah govt was hurting Hindu sentiments.

Higher education minister MC Sudhakar said action would be taken. "I feel some people are intentionally doing this to tarnish the image of the state govt," he said.



Meanwhile, Karnataka Examinations Authority (KEA) said it has initiated an inquiry through the deputy commissioner of Bengaluru Urban district, the custodian of the exam.

Examination peaceful
CET, conducted by KEA for admissions to engineering and other professional courses, was held across 745 centres in Karnataka. Officials said about 96% of the registered candidates appeared, and the exams were conducted smoothly. "This year, we deputed 745 dress code officers. We had also informed all students to reach the exam centre two hours early if they had any such dress code to be verified. A total of 15,265 CCTV cameras were installed for surveillance," said H Prasanna, executive director, KEA.


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