Amid allegations of a teacher causing offense to religious sentiments of students, a private school in Mangaluru, St. Georosa Higher Primary School, took action to dismiss her following an uproar from right-wing activists and BJP leaders. This decision was prompted by complaints from parents of a class VII student and members of the BJP.
On Monday, the parents of a student filed a complaint at the Mangaluru South police station, alleging that a teacher used derogatory language while discussing Hindu deities during a lesson on 'work is worship.'
Following this, BJP MLAs Bharat Y Shetty and Vedavyas Kamath intervened in the matter, demanded stringent action against the teacher and threatened to organize protests.
This incident is not isolated, as certain schools have been accused of propagating anti-Hindu sentiments among students before, stated Shetty in a released statement, as per PTI. He further urged Hindu parents to reconsider enrolling their children in schools managed by Christian authorities.
The teacher allegedly expressed that Mahabharata and Ramayana were 'imaginary' and attempted to instill 'anti-Hindu' sentiments among the students.
In a letter issued to the parents of the school late on Monday night, the management of St. Georsa School announced the decision to remove the teacher from her position and promptly appoint of a new teacher. The letter stressed the significance of maintaining a positive relationship with both students and parents to ensure uninterrupted academic studies.
The decision to dismiss the teacher aims to facilitate an impartial inquiry into the matter by the district education department, the letter said. Additionally, the school management expressed full cooperation with the ongoing investigation conducted by the authorities. "St Gerosa School, with a 60-year history, has not witnessed such an incident before. The institution is committed to upholding constitutional values, treating all faiths and communities with equality," it said, as per the report.