Children studying at Gyansthali Public School in Sirmaur were sent messages asking them to wear hijab, kurta pyjama, and Islamic caps. Workers from Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal received this information and went to the school.

They found that some nursery children were indeed wearing hijab and Islamic caps, as instructed by the school management for the Eid program. When questioned, the children confirmed that Gyansthali school asked them to wear these clothes. After showing the message to the school administration, which clearly allowed wearing caps and hijabs, the school admitted its mistake and promised it wouldn’t happen again.

The Vishwa Hindu Parishad regional head criticized the school for organizing an Eid program when the Hindu New Year and Chaitra Navratri began. He expressed concern that the school, where 95 per cent of the students are Hindu, is providing an inappropriate education similar to a Madrasa.

The Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal warned of fierce protests and threatened to get Gyansthali school’s recognition cancelled if such activities occur again. Hundreds of their workers, including Atul Pandey, District head Dharmendra Tripathi, District Co-Convenor Pandit Balkrishna Dwivedi, Sudhanshu Mishra, Avinash Tiwari, Rakesh Gupta, and Sumit, participated in the protest.

Gyansthali Public School is not the first to force Hindu students to wear Islamic dress. Last year, in Madhya Pradesh’s (MP) Damoh, Ganga Jamna School, Hindu girls were made to sport the hijab and recite ‘Surah-Al-Fatiha’. A similar incident was reported from MP’s Guna, where Hindu students were made to wear a Hijab and sing Islamic songs for the Eid function at a private school.

(Featured Image Source: Vindhya Bulletin)