Recently, a class X student in Kerala was forced to defecate inside the examination hall, after an invigilator denied him permission to use the restroom. The news had created a lot of hue and cry all over the country. Following this, P Suresh, Kerala State Commission For Protection Of Child Rights Chairperson, had filed a case against the teacher. Also, the Kerala General Education Department has issued an order to allow toilet breaks for students who are writing examinations.
But looks like this is not an isolated incident. Students often come under so much stress after being denied permission to use the loo while writing examinations. A Quora user had sought the community if they had to go through this. An answer in the thread by a user Om Kudalkar paints us a picture of what happened while he was writing his class X board examinations.
We all know how nervous students get right before examinations. Om wasn't any different when he went to the centre to write his French exam. The invigilator had warned the students that they won't be allowed a toilet break, so Om had gone to the toilet right before the exam began.
Here's what happened next:
"After about an hour or so, I had to pee. But I knew that I wasn’t going to be allowed. So, I decided to hold it in. After about 15 minutes, the urge became unbearable. I wasn’t able to concentrate on my paper. I didn’t want to end up scoring fewer marks even though the paper was very easy, just because I didn’t have the guts to take a piss. So, I did some drama about not feeling well and the invigilator let me go. They sent someone with me just to make sure that I don’t cheat. I quickly peed and went back to the class because I didn’t want to look suspicious.
After about another hour, tragedy struck. I had to pee again. I was sure that the invigilator wouldn’t send me even if my life depended on it. I was on the last few questions and there were still around 40 minutes left for the exam to get over. I couldn’t control myself and I knew that I had to do something or I wouldn’t be able to complete my paper.
I spilled water on myself and made it look like an accident. Because French was an optional subject, there were only 7 students in the class, all from my school. So, I wasn’t worried about being embarrassed. I made sure that I would get very wet.
No one even could’ve guessed what I had done that day. Yes, I peed on the spot while giving my 10th-grade board exams. I went on to finish my paper and scored 97 in French."
Om now laughs at it. But we couldn't help, but wonder, what is the big deal about letting students use the loo when needed?
