Echoes of Jantar Mantar in U.P. as ‘Gen Alpha’ school students stage protest for basic facilities
Days after the Cockroach Janta Party-led student protest in Delhi drew national attention, a similar expression of dissent emerged from Uttar Pradesh’s Fatehpur district on
Days after the Cockroach Janta Party-led student protest in Delhi drew national attention, a similar expression of dissent emerged from Uttar Pradesh’s Fatehpur district on Tuesday, when hundreds of students at a government-aided school walked out of their classrooms and staged a protest demanding better infrastructure. The school administration called police personnel to maintain order. Videos from the protest, which gained wider attention after being shared by Chandrashekhar Azad, Nagina MP and president of the Azad Samaj Party (Kanshi Ram), and Aam Aadmi Party, show police asking students to clear the road, even as the demonstrators continue marching.
The demonstration took place at Sarvodaya Inter College, a government-aided school with nearly 1,800 students, in Kishanpur town. Students marched through the locality holding portraits of B.R. Ambedkar and carrying placards that read: ‘College ki vyavastha sudharo, bacchon ka bhavishya sanwaro (Improve the college’s condition, secure the future of its students)’. Abhishek Sonkar, a student, alleged that midday meals had never been served in accordance with the prescribed menu.
In his post, the Nagina MP alleged that repeated representations to the school administration had failed to bring about any meaningful change. He concluded the post with the slogan, ‘Jai Bhim! Jai Gen Alpha!’ ‘Attended Delhi protest’ Principal of the school, L.B. Singh, told The Hindu that several demands, including the installation of four fans in each classroom, a water cooler and the provision of meals as per the prescribed menu, had been addressed immediately.
He added that a few students from the higher grades were learnt to have participated in the protest at Jantar Mantar.
The BriefWire