State govt slams BJP for 'politicising' omission of Arunachal, PoK from India's map for school exam

Kolkata: State Education minister Partha Chatterjee on Thursday denied the allegation of a BJP leader who accused the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education (WBBSE) of circulating a question paper of test examination where Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK) and Arunachal Pradesh were not shown on India's map.

Chatterjee strongly condemned the incident saying that it was a political move by the BJP to malign the state government. They were trying to thwart the process of development that had been started by the present government. He also asked the WBBSE officials to lodge a police complaint in this regard.

Chatterjee categorically mentioned: "These are baseless allegations. The secondary board sets question papers for the final examinations. It has no role in the test examinations held in schools. The respective school authorities set those question papers." He also added that the question papers prepared by the board never carries any watermarks. "There is a watermark of WBBSE on the map. However, there are generally no watermarks on the question papers printed by the board. It would have a code instead," he clarified.

He also accused the BJP of conspiring to malign the Bengal government and confuse the people of the state, as they (BJP) were unable to score politically here.

"BJP has been involved in various conspiracies after its leaders have found themselves alienated from the people. It is not only a blatant lie but a deliberate attempt to malign the state government," Chatterjee maintained.

He also stated that action will be taken against the school if it is found to have distributed this type of question papers among the students. The minister also reminded that the WBBSE only prepares the question papers of the final examination and not the papers for test examination. It is the responsibility of schools to set the test question papers.

Pointing fingers at the BJP leader who had presented the question paper before the media, Chatterjee said that whoever has shown the controversial map must be a part of the investigation and he should tell the police where he got the paper from.

"I have urged the president of WBBSE to take action against the school if found guilty. The board will also lodge a complaint with the police in this regard," Chatterjee stated.