A question in the history exam paper at West Bengal’s Vidyasagar University termed Indian freedom fighters as ‘terrorists’, sparking a huge controversy.
The controversial question asked students to “name three district magistrates of Midnapore who were killed by terrorists", according to a report by News 18.
The question sparked outrage, especially given the historical significance of undivided Midnapore, which was a major hub of the armed revolutionary movement against British colonial rule during the pre-independence era.
Vice Chancellor Dipak Kumar Kar issued a clarification stating that the reference was a printing mistake as the controversy snowballed.
"A printing mistake occurred in the question paper of undergraduate history examination yesterday...I inquired about the matter with the Controller of Examinations and asked for a report from the Controller of the Examination as well as from the Chairperson of the Undergraduate Board of Studies of History. After getting the report, we came to know that the error occurred during moderation, which was unintentional and not detected during proofreading,” he told news agency ANI.
The row erupted after the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) West Bengal unit shared a picture of the question paper from semester 6 of the History Honours course, alleging it termed prominent freedom fighters from the state ‘terrorists'.
“Freedom Fighters are now Terrorists in West Bengal!!! In Vidyasagar University History Honours (6th semester, Paper C14 - Modern Nationalism in India) exam included a shameful question branding legendary Indian revolutionaries as ‘terrorists.’ The question asks: ‘Name three District Magistrates of Medinipur, who terrorists killed.’ And the so-called “terrorists” listed are none other than our great freedom fighters,” the post on social media platform X said.
In its post, the BJP also listed the freedom fighters mentioned in the question, namely Bimal Dasgupta, Jyoti Jiban Ghosh, Pradyot Bhattacharya, and Prabanshu Pal.
“Bengal was once the cradle of intellectualism and nationalism. But today, under Mamata Banerjee’s government, the very idea of Indian nationalism is being vilified, and freedom fighters are being equated with criminals. This is a deliberate rewriting of history to poison young minds,” the BJP said.
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