'Sacred items should not be touched': Shivakumar on Janivara row

"It was wrong to remove the 'Janivara'. People wear items like the 'linga' (Shiva lingam) or 'udu-dara' (a string of cotton tied around the waist). Sacred items such as thaali, bangles, ear rings and 'Janivara' should not be touched," said the Deputy Chief Minister when asked about the incident where sacred threads (Janivara/ Janeu) were removed during the CET examination.

The Deputy Chief Minister said that these are personal religious matters, adding that the government does not support interference in such matters.

"There is a practice of removing such items during police recruitment tests, but they should not be removed in schools or colleges. What was done here is wrong. In the past, there have been incidents where students used hidden Bluetooth devices and other gadgets to cheat. Measures have now been taken to prevent such malpractices," he said.

Principal and staff of Sai Spoorthi Pre-University College in Karnataka's Bidar district were suspended after a probe by the police confirmed that students were not allowed to take the Common Entrance Test (CET) for wearing the sacred thread (Janivara/Janeu), in violation of rules and guidelines.

Chandrashekhar Biradar, the Principal of Sai Spoorthi Pre-University College in Bidar, and the college's invigilator Satish Pawar have been suspended on the order of the Higher Education Department Secretary, K. G. Jagadeesha.

The action was taken immediately after Bidar Deputy Commissioner Shilpa Sharma submitted the report.

The Karnataka State Commission for Protection of Child Rights has also registered a suo motu complaint.

Besides, a police complaint has been filed against an officer attached to the Education Department on Saturday for allegedly denying entry to students wearing the sacred thread into the examination hall during the Common Entrance Test (CET) in Karnataka's Shivamogga district.

Suchivrat Kulkarni, the student who was denied the opportunity to write the CET exam, told the media that he was stopped. He said a staff member made a reckless comment, asking what would happen if someone committed suicide using the sacred thread inside the examination hall.

Shivakumar also criticised the Karnataka Leader of the Opposition R. Ashoka, on the caste census, saying that a person who holds a responsible position should not lie.

"If he wants to know whether the caste census report is genuine or fake, he should ask Jayaprakash Hegde, who was the chairman of the commission, or the officer Dayanand. He will get the answer," said the Deputy Chief Minister.

On Minister Satish Jarkiholi's comment that it would take another year to implement the caste census, he said, "This is an internal matter to be discussed within the Cabinet."

Earlier, LoP Ashoka had claimed that what exists now is a fake report of the caste census report.