HMs, teachers booked for taking students to anti-CAA protest

CPI(M) functionaries say the children participated in human chain after school hours

SRIVILLIPUTTUR

Srivilliputtur Town Police have booked heads of two schools and teachers for taking the schoolchildren to an anti-Citizenship Amendment Act protest held here on Thursday evening.

The police have booked Headmistresses of two aided schools, Vasanthi and Muthuselvi, and teachers under Section 505 of the Indian Penal Code for making statements conducing public mischief and under the provisions of the Juvenile Justice Act.

Srivilliputtur Tahsildar V. Krishnaveni said on getting information that girl children of the schools were involved in the human chain protest, organised in the town against the CAA by Platform for People’s Unity, she rushed to the spot and warned the teachers against having allowed the children to participate.

The human chain was formed from Srivilliputtur bus stand to Chinnakadai bazaar.

“I asked the teachers to let the children leave the spot immediately. We were more bothered about the safety of the children in the event of any untoward incident,” the Tahsildar said. The children left the spot immediately, she added.

A police source said Hindu Munnani cadre, led by Yuvaraj, had objected to the students’ participation in the protest. “They said the students’ participating in the protest was without the consent of their parents,” the police said. The police booked them under Section 151 of the Code of Criminal Procedure for trying to disrupt the protest.

However, representatives of some Hindu outfits complained about the incident with the officials of the Department of Education.

Based on a complaint lodged by Village Administrative Officer Velraj, Srivilliputtur Town Police have booked the heads of the higher secondary and high schools.

Communist Party of India (Marxist) Virudhunagar district secretary, K. Arjunan, who too had participated in the human chain protest, said the protest had started only after 5.15 p.m. after school hours. The children who came in large numbers formed a separate line at around 5.30 p.m.

“It was voluntary involvement of the students pressing for people’s unity. However, the Hindu outfits, which always have a grudge against minority institutions claiming that they were getting more government funds, have targeted such schools,” he said.

Condemning the case booked against the teachers, Mr. Arjunan said the party was mulling a district-level protest against the action taken “due to political pressure”, he said.