The headmistress of a government school in the Raipur district in Chhattisgarh was suspended after a Class 4 English exam paper listed “Ram” as one of the possible answers to a question about the name of an individual’s dog, The Times of India reported on Monday.

The headmistress, Shikha Soni, said that she intended to write “Ramu” as an option, but inadvertently missed the letter “u'“.

A contractual assistant teacher who moderated the question paper, Namrata Verma, also said that she failed to spot the missing letter, The Times of India reported. In the wake of the controversy, proceedings are underway to terminate her services.

The incident took place at a school at Nakti in the Tilda block of Raipur district.

Both Soni and Verma maintained that they did not intend to hurt religious sentiments, and apologised for their actions.

Nevertheless, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal complained to the district collector and the police, after which a case was filed against unknown persons under a non-bailable section of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita that pertains to deliberate acts outraging religious feelings, The Indian Express reported.

District Education Officer Himanshu Bhartiya launched an inquiry into the matter. A five-member committee has been set up to investigate the complaint.

“Ram is a revered deity of the Hindu religion, and including ‘Ram’ as an option [for the answer] has hurt religious sentiments,” the education officer said, according to The Indian Express.

Bhartiya also issued warning letters to the block education officer of Tilda for failing to appoint an “experienced teacher” to set the paper and to the school principal for not selecting a proper moderator.