As coronavirus cases are increasing across the country, PMK founder S Ramadoss demanded the cancellation of public examinations for Class 10 and 12 students of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) board and Class 12 students of Tamil Nadu state board, on Saturday. In a statement, the PMK founder expressed shock at the arrangements being done by CBSE for conducting exams of Class 10 and 12 students even as COVID-19 cases are increasing.

Ramadoss also said if exams are to be held then CBSE can hold the same online. In the case of Tamil Nadu state board Class 12 exams, Ramadoss said that the exams should be cancelled and the students should be declared as all-pass based on their performance in the other tests.

Currently, schools are conducting classes for the standard 12 students ahead of the board examinations. The schools are also holding model exams since the exams for the students are scheduled to begin from May 3, a day after the declaration of Tamil Nadu Assembly election results on May 2.

The Tamil Nadu government had last year postponed class 12 exams several times before cancelling them. The marks for the exams were also given to the students based on their performance in previous tests.

Incidentally, the leaders of political parties including PMK, had recently addressed large Assembly election rallies with thousands of people gathering and coming in close contacts without following the physical distancing norms.