Using school students in road blockade
GUWAHATI: Hailakandi District Deputy Commissioner, Keerthi Jalli has urged the Commissioner and Secretary, Secondary Education to cancel the certification of Blue Flowers English Medium Higher Secondary School for using school students in a protest over poor condition of road at Rabindra Sarani in Hailakandi town, according to a Press communique issued by the DIPRO, Hailakandi.
In a letter to the Commissioner and Secretary, Secondary Education, Jalli stated that the Principal of the school, Kshtish Ranjan Pal along with teachers headed the road blockade by involving quite a good number of minor children in uniforms on July 9 throwing traffic out of gear and causing inconvenience to motorists and pedestrians alike for close to three hours.
Jalli further pointed out that the principal did not budge an inch from his ground despite fervent pleas by the circle officer to withdraw the protests as the students were drenched and had every chance of getting infected during the disease-prone season.
Contending that involvement of school children in such protests tantamount to flagrant violation of the Right to Education Act, 2009 and Section 75 of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act 2015, DC, Jalli urged the Commissioner and Secretary to cancel the certification of the school to ‘keep the young minds away from such a toxic academic environment’.
FIR has been filed against the principal by Child Welfare Society, Hailakandi at the Sadar Police Station. Investigating Officer Ankhumi Kalita has started investigation into the case 722/19 registered on July 10.
Earlier, a show cause was also served on the principal by the district administration but the reply by the chief administrator of the school was not found satisfactory.
The principal of the school is nowhere to be seen ever since the filing of the case.
It may be mentioned that in March this year, four schools were served show cause notice for using children in non-academic purposes.