Row over ‘terrorist' reference to freedom fighters in exam paper; varsity V-C issues apology for grave mistake
Following protests by students, the university's Vice-Chancellor Dilipkumar Kar issued an apology on Thursday, terming the incident a 'grave mistake'.
The contentious question, printed in Bengali, read: 'Who were the three District Magistrates killed by the terrorists of Midnapore?'
It appeared in a history question paper distributed to fourth-semester students on Wednesday.
As the question circulated among students, dozens gathered in front of V-C Kar's office, raising slogans: 'We demand an answer — why were brave freedom fighters insulted?' and 'You must apologise!'
Vice-Chancellor Kar said, 'We are deeply saddened. This is not a routine error. It is unacceptable and we seek forgiveness.' He said a probe committee was constituted within 24 hours of the incident.
'It was a printing mistake that went unnoticed during proofreading. Once the paper was circulated, there was no time to make corrections. I have asked the controller of examinations to submit a detailed report,' said Kar.
The three 'slain district magistrates' referred to in the question were James Peddie, Robert Douglas and Bernard Berge, who were gunned down in a span of three years for their tyranny in Midnapore (Medinipur).
Academic Pabitra Sarkar condemned the error, saying, 'It is unthinkable in Independent India to refer to youths who fought British oppression as 'terrorists '— a term used by the colonial rulers.'
Leader of Opposition in West Bengal Assembly Suvendu Adhikari in a post on X described the terrorist reference as 'absolutely outrageous.'
'The administrative authorities of Vidyasagar University have once again insulted our revered freedom fighters by labeling the brave revolutionaries of Medinipur as 'militants' and 'terrorists' in the 2025 History Honours sixth semester question paper,' he said.
'This is not an isolated mistake but a deliberate distortion of our history, repeating the same disgraceful error from 2023 under the watch of Dr Nirmal Kumar Mahato, Head of the History Department and a known TMC affiliate in WBCUPA (West Bengal College and University Professors Association); TMC's political organisation comprising professors,' Adhikari added.
'Shockingly, no action has been taken against Dr Mahato despite his repeated oversight failures. Worse still, his stature has risen, he was promoted to Joint Secretary of WBCUPA after the 2023 blunder. For the unversed; the tyrannical British District Magistrates; Burge (1933), Peddie (1931), and Douglas (1932) were targeted by Indian freedom fighters. Peddie was killed by Bimal Dasgupta and Jyotijiban Ghosh,' the BJP leader posted online.
The BJP leader questioned whether the elevation of Mahato an endorsement of Trinamool Congress's belief that 'our freedom fighters were militants and terrorists.'
'Is this political elevation of Dr. Nirmal Kumar Mahato, an endorsement of TMC's belief that our freedom fighters were militants and terrorists? The Vice Chancellor's refusal to act only deepens the suspicion of political protectionism. This is a blow to every Indian who honours our independence struggle. I demand immediate accountability, the removal of Dr Mahato, and a thorough investigation into this institutional failure. Will TMC clarify if they stand by this shameful narrative?,' he said.
Mahato could not be contacted for comment, while university sources described Adhikari's remarks as 'unfortunate.'
Trinamool Congress (TMC) state general secretary Kunal Ghosh distanced the party from the controversy, saying, 'The questions were set by a few persons, not the education department. It needs to be investigated who approved the question paper.'
CPI(M) leader Sujan Chakraborty and Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury also condemned the terminology, calling it 'unthinkable and unimaginable in independent India' and held the TMC government accountable for allowing such a lapse under its watch.
Causing further embarrassment to the varsity, the BA Honours Political Science exam was cancelled on Friday after it was discovered that the question paper was 'out of syllabus.' University authorities said fresh tests would be conducted next week.
Educationist Chinmat Guha said, 'This is not an individual error. Preparing a question paper is a collective process. This is a serious lapse at multiple levels.'
In 2019, freedom fighters Khudiram Bose and Prafulla Chaki were described as terrorists in Class 8 state textbooks, leading to public outcry. The then Education Minister Partha Chatterjee had promised in the Assembly that the error would be corrected and apologised on behalf of the department.
— WITH PTI INPUTS
(Anisha Ghosh is an intern at the Kolkata office of The Indian Express)
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