Caste markings on chest: NCP asks for probe

The Sharad Pawar-led NCP on Monday asked the PMO to probe the marking of candidates' chests with their caste categories during police recruitment in Madhya Pradesh and described the incident as "shameful".

"It is extremely shameful that during police recruitment in the BJP-ruled Madhya Pradesh, the candidates were marked as SC, OBC, ST on their chest," NCP MP Supriya Sule tweeted.

Describing the process as "insensitive", Sule said this act deserved strong condemnation.

"The PMO should probe the incident," she said.

Photos of the recruitment test showed aspirants for the post of police constables had their caste categories written on their bare chests in Dhar district.

Photos in various newspapers showed aspirants with "SC" (Scheduled Caste), "ST" (Scheduled Tribe) and "G" (General) marked with sketch pens on their chests as they queued up for their medical examination, triggering a massive debate on social media.

Dhar Superintendent of Police Virendra Singh on Sunday said he had ordered an inquiry into the incident, to be conducted by a Deputy SP rank officer.

"The incident occurred on Saturday when the District Medical Board was carrying out the medical examination of these candidates," he had said.