Case Registered Against Those Who Forced Girls To Remove Bra In NEET Exam Centre
Update: 2022-07-19 11:45 IST
The father of a 17-year-old girl, who was sitting for her first ever NEET exam, alleged that his daughter was yet to come out of the traumatic experience.(Photo for representational purpose only)
On Tuesday, police in Kerala opened an investigation into an alleged occurrence in which young women and girls who enrolled for the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test were allegedly told to take off their undergarments before being permitted to take the test in the Kollam district.
According to the police, a case has been opened under Indian Penal Code (IPC) Sections 354 (Assault or criminal force to a woman with the intent to outrage her modesty) and 509 (Word, gesture, or act intended to insult a woman's modesty) on the basis of a complaint from a girl who allegedly experienced humiliation while taking the NEET exam on Sunday at a private educational institute in the district's Ayur, reported The News Indian Express.
Police officials added that an investigation had been started and that the friskers who were reportedly involved in the act would shortly be arrested. The case was registered after a group of female officers recorded the girl's statement.
The problem was brought to light on Monday when a 17-year-old girl's father told the media that his daughter, who was taking her first-ever NEET exam, was still recovering from the terrible experience of having to take the more than 3-hour-long exam while lacking a brassiere.
The father had stated to a television station that his daughter was dressed in accordance with the NEET bulletin's dress code, which left out any reference of innerwear.
Numerous youth organisations protested the incident and demanded that the offenders be punished. An probe into the event has also been requested by the Kerala State Human Rights Commission.
R Bindu, the minister for higher education in Kerala, has written a letter to Dharmendra Pradhan, the minister for education in the Union, urging him to take strong action against the organisation that is accused of requiring female students to remove their underwear before entering the NEET exam centre.
The Kerala minister wrote to the Union Minister and expressed her "dismay and shock" at the information regarding the "naked assault on the dignity and honour of the women students." According to Bindu, a company in charge of the exam's administration allegedly made the female test takers strip off before entering the testing facility for reasons that were known only to them.
She emphasised the need for action against the agency to stop future occurrences of a similar nature and requested the Union Minister's intervention in the matter. She said that the students' morale and composure have been negatively impacted by the shame and shock of this unexpected turn of events, which has negatively impacted their performance in the test.