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| Catholic nun Sister Seba comes out strongly against CBSE dress-code in AIPMT exam |
Staff correspondent, July 26, 2015, NewsCrunch
Kerala nun Sister Seba also known as Remya George has hit out at CBSE for imposing dress code that violated he minority rights sanctioned by the Indian Constitution.
Sathya Das, the principal of Jawahar Central School at Thiruvananthapuram stopped her from writing the pre-medical entrance exam after she refused to remove her headgear and cross, as required by the CBSE dress code.
In a Malayalam interview with Anwesham India, Sister Seba, who is a Catholic, pointed out that India was a democracy, which gave people the freedom to follow their religious practices and beliefs.
Imposing a dress code without considering the sensitivities of the minorities was a violation of Indian constitution, minority rights and human rights as well, she pointed out.
To prevent the use of electronic devices to cheat during the pre-medical AIPMT exam, CBSE had banned students from bringing accessories such as belts, cap and scarf. The Supreme Court had upheld the dress code on Friday leaving students no choice but to follow it.
In the interview, Sister Seba also recalls her confrontation with Sathya Das when she went to write the exam.
She says she entered the school and stood in the queue to be frisked. It was then the principal approached her and told her about the dress code.
Sister Seba had gone to the examination centre with another nun. The principal suggested that she hand over her headscarf and the cross to her while she wrote the exam.
Declining to remove her articles of faith, Sister Seba spoke to her superiors and decided to skip the exam.
She said head gears are important or nuns, which are removed only when they go to bed.
Sathya Das, who is also a Christian, said Sister Seba refused to cooperate and decided not to write the exam after speaking to her superiors.
CBSE dress code drew angry reactions from Muslims and Sikhs in different parts of the country. Five Sikh students were told to remove their accessories. At least one Muslim girl in UP refused to write the exam after declining to remove her scarf.
CBSE dress code has upset minority groups, which say in the name of checking exam malpractice, religious symbols are being targeted.
CBSE dress code has upset minority groups, which say in the name of checking exam malpractice, religious symbols are being targeted.