Hyderabad school dismisses teacher who asked Class 2 students to recite and memorize ‘Kalma, Surah Fatiha’
A Hyderabad school recently issued a termination order for a teacher who allegedly gave religious homework to Class 2 students, ANI reported. The accused identified
A Hyderabad school recently issued a termination order for a teacher who allegedly gave religious homework to Class 2 students, ANI reported. The accused identified as Shaik Aisha Parveen was employed at Success – The School located in Sayeedabad. In the aftermath of the incident, the school authorities permanently disqualified the mother teacher from future employment opportunities in the Success Group of Education Institutions. The letter dated 15 July states, "Further you are informed that you are permanently disqualified to apply for employment in future in the Success Group of Education Institutions." The management took action after a formal complaint was lodged at the Sayeedabad, ANI reported. Also Read | Why Rajasthan lost over 8 lakh Govt school students in 2 years: Experts weigh in Outraged by the incident, BJP workers protested outside the school premises who were ultimately detained by Hyderabad police.
Also Read | Punjab caps private school fee hikes at 5%, regularises 516 forest dept workers As per media reports, the Class 2 Hindu student was asked to recite and memorize the Kalma and Surah Fatiha for homework. The school management initially termed the incident a mistake, citing that the child was in a section where Deeniyath (Islamic teachings) is usually taught to Muslim students. A local news report suggests that the teacher had given the “Read Sura Fatiha” homework on 15 July which was mentioned in the school diary under the subject ‘Deeniyath’. This came four days after the homework ‘Read Kalma' was given but was struck off later. Also Read | Govt school enrolment drops by 86 lakh in two years as private schools gain According to the management, majority of the students in the school are Muslims, who have to study Deeniyath subject.
However, the subject is not taught to non-Muslim students. Notably, ‘Kalma’ is the Islamic declaration of faith and testimony, and ‘Surah Fatiha’ is the first chapter of the Holy Quran. Parents, political workers question school management When parents complained and protested against the religious teaching, the management acknowledged that it was an inadvertent mistake and took the action of dismissing the services of the teacher. Independent MLA T Raja Singh Lodh reacted to the incident and sought Chief Minister Revanth Reddy's strict action against schools which are forcing Hindu children to recite ‘Kalma’. Condemning the incident, the former BJP MLA said, “This is not the first such case in Telangana; there have been several similar incidents in the past. Yesterday, when the parents of the child went to the school and questioned the management about how they could pressure their Hindu child to recite the Kalma, the school authorities had no answer,” IANS reported.
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