Minority community protests RU controversial questions

The National Coordinating Committee of Religious and Ethnic Minority Organisation today demanded resignation of those responsible for the controversial multiple choice questions (MCQ) in an entry test of Rajshahi University.

At a protest rally and human chain programme in front of the Jatiya Press Club in Dhaka, the committee also demanded punishment for those responsible for setting the questions in the fine arts faculty entry exams.

The committee has been formed by 19 minority organisations, including Bangladesh Hindu-Bouddha-Christian Oikya Parishad and Bangladesh Christian Association.

“We urge, the education minister to investigate the incident and take action against those responsible,” Hubart Gomez, one of the top leaders of Bangladesh Hindu-Bouddha-Christian Oikya Parishad, said while addressing the rally.

National Coordinating Committee co-coordinator Mahendra Kumar Nath and Christian Association President Nirmal Rosario were among others who spoke in the rally.

This year, 4,032 students vied for the 120 seats of the faculty. Two of the 80 MCQs in the admission tests have been widely criticised.

One of the questions asked, "What is the name of the greatest book in the world?"

It had four choices: A) The Holy Quran, B) The Holy Bible, C) The Holy Injil and D) Gita.

This particular MCQ, along with another controversial one from that paper, later triggered an outrage on the campus and criticisms on social media, with many blasting the university authorities for coming up with the "extremely communal" questions.

The other question was, "When did the Myanmar army and the Buddhists launch an armed attack on the Rohingya Muslims?"