KASARAGOD: Communal organizations have stirred up a controversy over a question from the Freedom Quiz 2026 competition organized by the Social Science Club Association for LP section students in the Manjeshwaram sub-district as part of Independence Day celebrations. The controversy centers around a question asking who among the freedom fighters suffered the most punishment from the British, and the answer key provided to the teachers, which stated V.D. Savarkar.
Arrested for his participation in the freedom movement, Savarkar was sent to the Andaman cellular jail on July 4, 1911. He served a total of 13 years in prison—10 years in Andaman and 3 years in Ratnagiri jail—until 1921. The British administration did not classify Savarkar as a political prisoner. For the first six months, he was subjected to complete solitary confinement. According to his prison ticket, he faced punishment eight times between 1912 and 1914. Even after his release from prison, the British administration did not allow him to leave Ratnagiri until 1937. In the special tribunal trial on September 10, 1910, he had been sentenced to 50 years in prison.
The questionnaire was distributed to schools through the AEO (Assistant Educational Officer). Public Education Minister N. Shamsudeen instructed the Director of Public Education to take strict action against those “guilty” for including a glorifying question in the quiz competition. The move to penalize those who prepared the question and answer key has drawn widespread protests. The quiz, titled Freedom Quiz, was held on August 6 in schools across the Kasaragod, Kumbala, and Manjeshwaram sub-districts.
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