There is no age for learning and studying, say two former Uttar Pradesh lawmakers, in their fifties, who cleared the state Class 12 board exams and now aim to take up degree courses.
While former MLA from Bareilly district's Bithri-Chainpur seat Rajesh Mishra secured 263 marks out of 500, Prabhudayal Valmiki, a two-time MLA from Hastinapur, got second division marks in the exam, the result of which was declared on Tuesday.
"Two years ago, I cleared the Class 10 board exam and now I have passed the Class 12 exam also. Now, I want to pursue LLB so that I can help poor people get justice," 55-year-old Mishra, who represented the Bithri-Chainpur seat in the Uttar Pradesh assembly as a BJP member from 2017 to 2022, said.
He, however, is not satisfied with the marks he scored in three subjects. "I am not satisfied with the marks in Drawing Design, Civics and Education. I will get the answer sheets scrutinised," he told PTI.
Mishra, who hails from Bharatual village and is popularly known as Pappu Bharatual, secured 57 marks in Hindi, 47 in Civics, 42 in Education, 36 in Drawing Design and 81 in Sociology.
A jubilant neighbour, Brajesh Kumar Singh, congratulated him saying "Pappu Pass ho Gaya", a popular line from an old advertisement featuring actor Amitabh Bachchan.
When information about Pappu ji clearing the exam reached the village, his well-wishers came out on the streets and distributed sweets, danced to the beats of dhols and shouted "Pappu Pass ho Gaya", Manoj Gaur, a resident of Bharataul, said.
"I encouraged him to take the Class 12 exam and he prepared for it. He has passed the exam and we are proud," Professor Vandana Sharma said. Fifty-nine-year-old Valmiki, a two-time Samajwadi Party MLA from Meerut's Hastinapur, said he appeared for the examination from the Adarsh Inter College in Baghpat, and passed with second division marks.
He has represented Hastinapur from 2002 to 2007 and 2012 to 2017. During his second term in assembly, he was the Minister of State for Silk Industry.
Valmiki said his inspiration has been Babasaheb Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar and he will now pursue a degree course. There is no age for studies, he said.
On his plans to pursue LLB, Mishra said, "When I was an MLA, I realised that people from the economically weaker sections of society do not get justice as they cannot avail the services of a good lawyer." "I will be a lawyer for such people," he said and stressed there is no age for learning.
The former legislator also asserted that there was no copying in the board examinations and invigilation was strict.
Director of Secondary Education Mahendra Dev on Tuesday said CCTV cameras with voice recorders were installed in 8,753 examination centres to ensure there was no cheating during the exam.
This was the first time in the last 30 years that neither any question paper was leaked nor any wrong bundle of question papers was opened and as such there was no re-examination, Dev had said.
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