Rajendra Pal Gautam

A recruitment exam for primary school teachers in the capital Saturday saw a question with allegedly demeaning references to the Dalit community, with Delhi Social Welfare Minister Rajendra Pal Gautam saying he will raise the issue with Chief Secretary Anshu Prakash on Monday.

The exam was conducted by the Delhi Subordinate Services Selection Board (DSSSB), which comes under L-G Anil Baijal, Gautam said.

Sharing a copy of the question paper on Hindi Language and Comprehension, the minister said: “The services department comes under the L-G and DSSSB is a wing of the department. I will meet the Chief Secretary and demand a probe.”

The multiple choice question had four options, all disparaging to Dalits, Gautam alleged.

The DSSSB, in a statement, said, “… a question having casteist undertone appeared due to an inadvertent error… The appearance of any such question which may have unintentionally hurt the sentiments of any section of society is deeply regretted… This question shall not be evaluated. The board is taking necessary corrective measures to sensitise its paper setters, and action is being taken to ensure such an incident is not repeated.”