Historians and several teachers’ associations have argued that the question is not only controversial, but also spreads misinformation (representative image)
The controversies centered on essay-type questions where the examinees were asked to choose one of three choices related to the father of the nation question and write an expository essay on it
Controversy has arisen over a controversial question in the history paper in the ongoing secondary examination conducted by the West Bengal Board of Secondary Examination (WBBSE).
The controversies centered on essay-type questions, where examinees were asked to choose one of three choices related to the Father of the Nation question and write an expository essay on it.
The main question was whether Mahatma Gandhi always distanced himself from the labor movement in the country. The three choices given to the subjects about the reasons for this dissociation were: a) Mahatma Gandhi always represented the lobby of mill owners b) Mahatma Gandhi wanted to avoid a clash between labor and capital and c) Mahatma Gandhi worried about the consequences of the movement on law & order situation.
Historians and several teachers’ associations have strongly criticized the development, claiming that the question is not only controversial but also spreads misinformation. “Nowhere in the secondary syllabus is it mentioned that Mahatma Gandhi distanced himself from the labor movement. Clearly the person who wrote this question never had the history in his or her syllabus,” said a member of the All Bengal Teachers’ Association.
Historian AK Das pointed out that one of the most important and successful movements led by Mahatma Gandhi was “Ahmedabad Satyagraha” in March 1918. hunger strike in support of factory workers’ demands for a 35 percent wage increase. So this is nothing but a distortion of history,” said Das.
However, the WBBSE authorities have claimed that such questions are sometimes asked in a different style to measure the intelligence quotient of the students attempting the question. They have also assured that when reviewing the answer paper, the best interests of the examinees will be kept in mind and the examinees will not suffer under any circumstances.
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(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and was published from a syndicated news agency feed)