Assam: Headmistress Sent To Jail For Bringing Cooked Beef To School

The Additional Superintendent of Police added that the court sent the headmistress to judicial custody on the next day.

Representative Image (File Photo: PTI)

New Delhi: The headmistress of a school in Assam’s Goalpara district was arrested and sent to jail for bringing cooked beef to school for her lunch, officials on Thursday said. Additional Superintendent of Police, Mrinal Deka, said the president of the management committee of Hurkachungi Middle English School of Lakhipur area had lodged a complaint against the headmistress alleging that she had carried beef for lunch, PTI reported. “We brought her to the police station on May 16. After questioning she was arrested,” he said.

The Additional Superintendent of Police added that the court sent the headmistress to judicial custody on the next day.

This development took place after a case was registered against the headmistress under Sections 295(A) (deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs) and 153(A) (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony) of the Indian Penal Code.

The consumption of beef is not illegal in Assam.

The Assam Cattle Preservation Act, 2021, however, bans cattle slaughter and sale of beef in the areas where Hindus, Jains and Sikhs are in a majority or within a five-km radius of a temple or satra (Vaishnavite monasteries) or any other institution as maybe prescribed by the authorities, according to the news agency.

The headmistress allegedly brought the cooked beef to school during the ‘Gunotsav 2022’, which was underway between May 11 to 14.

‘Gunotsav’ is an exercise to evaluate the performance of the schools in the state.