The Assam Public Service Commission (APSC) has come under heavy fire on social media lately over a question it asked related to the ongoing Manipur ethnic conflict in the Agricultural Development Officer (ADO) examination, conducted by APSC on August 10.
The Manipur-based Meitei Heritage Society (MHS) has sought clarification from the APSC to declare the question null and void to ensure it is not used for evaluation purposes, as the question allegedly intends to malign the image of the Meitei community.
Question no. 95 of the ADO Exam asked: “Consider the following statements about the recent ethnic violence in Manipur: (i) The violence primarily involved the Meitei and the Kuki-Zo communities. (ii) The conflict stemmed from a High Court order favoring the Meiteis. (iii) Armed groups such as Arambai Tenggol and Meitei Leepun have been accused of committing rights abuses in Manipur.” Candidates were asked to choose the correct answer using the given codes: “(A) Only (i) (i) and (ii); (B) Only (ii) and (iii); (C) Only (i); (D) All the statements are correct.”
The Meitei Heritage Society expressed that the answer key ignored the role of Chin-Kuki militants and Kuki-Zo CSOs in the current conflict. The MHS also stated that it submitted a representation to APSC, requesting consideration of publicly available reports, including those by the NIA, CBI, and a Supreme Court-appointed committee, which highlighted the role of Kuki groups.
