IIT Kanpur turns Arvind Kejriwal's Delhi election loss into an engineering question; internet reacts

The recent defeat of Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party in the Delhi Assembly elections unexpectedly became the basis for a unique exam question at IIT Kanpur.

The question, part of an Electrical Engineering quiz (ESC201) conducted on February 11, quickly went viral on X (formerly Twitter). The image, shared by user Shefali Vaidya, featured the peculiar exam query, which humorously tied in Kejriwal's post-election defeat.

The question presented a scenario where, after his party's loss, Kejriwal wanted to tune into PM Modi's radio show Mann Ki Baat, but needed a filter to isolate the frequency of the Vividh Bharti channel (105.4 MHz) while blocking two nearby FM channels: Radio Nasha (107.2 MHz) and FM Rainbow Lucknow (100.7 MHz).

Students were tasked with helping the former Delhi Chief Minister design a filter that would pass Vividh Bharti while attenuating the two FM channels by at least -60 dB. The catch? Kejriwal could only afford a resistor of 50 Ω, along with a variable inductor and capacitor to build the filter.

The full question read: "After a crushing defeat in the Delhi elections, IIT alumnus Mr. Arvind Kejriwal wants to tune into the 'Mann ki Baat' programme by our Prime Minister on the Vividh Bharti (AIR) FM at a frequency of 105.4 MHz. Mr. Kejriwal wants to design a filter that may pass the content of the Vividh Bharti channel while rejecting Radio Nasha (107.2 MHz) and FM Rainbow Lucknow (100.7 MHz) by at least -60 dB. Since he spent a lot of money during the election campaign, he can only afford a resistor of 50 Ω, a variable inductor, and a variable capacitor to design this filter. Can you please help Mr. Kejriwal design this filter using the R, L, and C components and find out: (a) the quality factor (Q) of this filter? (b) the values of inductance and capacitance needed?"

The image of the question paper went viral, accumulating over 5 lakh views. Social media users had mixed reactions to the unusual question.

One user commented, "The question itself deserves ten marks! And anyone who answers without laughing should get 10 grace marks."

Another user chimed in, "Samajh mein kuchh nahi aaya, par padh ke acha laga (Didn’t understand anything but felt good reading)."

IIT Kanpur issues statement

Meanwhile, IIT Kanpur issued a statement after the question gained traction online. The institute clarified that its faculty members often use references to public figures, both real and fictional, to make academic content more engaging.

"It has come to our attention that a question from an exam in the Department of Electrical Engineering has been circulating on social media. We would like to clarify that the faculty member in question frequently incorporates references to well-known personalities to make exam questions more engaging for students. In the past, similar references have included characters such as Tony Stark. The intent behind this approach is purely academic, with no other implications," the statement read.