Outrage over foot worship at schools in Kasaragod, Kannur
The ceremony, part of Guru Purnima celebration on Vyasa Jayanti, saw students kneeling and washing the feet of teachers, including retired teachers, and offering flowers in a symbolic ritual of reverence on Thursday.
General Education Minister V. Sivankutty on Saturday demanded a report from the Director of General Education and condemned the practice as 'undemocratic and against the spirit of modern education.'
The Kerala State Commission for Protection of Child Rights sought reports from the Bekal Deputy Superintendent of Police and the Badudka police on the incident.
The rituals were reportedly held at Kakkachal Saraswathi Vidyalayam at Bandadka, Thrikkarippur Chakrapani Vidya Mandiram English Medium School, and Cheemeni Vivekananda Vidyamandiram — all under the Bharatiya Vidya Niketan umbrella. A similar ceremony was also held at Sreekandapuram Vivekananda Vidyapeedam in Kannur. The events were led by the Vidayala Samiti in celebration of Vyasa Jayanti.
Visuals of the event has been widely circulated on social media, drawing criticism.
Terming the event as primitive and degrading, the Student Federation of India, Balasangham, and Democratic Youth Federation of India staged protests and lodged complaints. The SFI approached the child rights commission, demanding accountability.
SFI Kasaragod district secretary K, Pranav said the ceremony was regressive and contrary to Kerala's progressive educational values.
The DYFI said the ritual was an attempt to introduce Sangh Parivar ideology in educational institutions and undermine scientific temper and secular values of the public education system.
The DYFI announced a State-wide campaign 'Human vigilance against Sangh Parivar's move to return to primitive times' on July 14 in front of private schools.
Earlier, Mr. Sivankutty, speaking to mediapersons, reiterated that such practices eroded the purpose of education, to foster critical thinking and self-awareness. 'Instilling a slave mentality in students has no place in democratic society,' he said.
The Minister said the Department of General Education had the authority to take action against schools in any syllabus that did not comply with the Right to Education Act and regulations.
The Welfare Party of India also condemned the act, calling it an insult to humanity. In a statement, the Kasaragod district unit accused the Bharatiya Vidya Niketan of attempting to usher in a Hindutva-oriented social order through education institutions. The demanded an investigation and strict action against those responsible.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
SP MP demands rollback of school merger
Lucknow: Samajwadi Party MP from Machhlishahr Priya Saroj has written to the Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan demanding review of the policy of 'integration of schools' in Uttar Pradesh and cancellation of the merger process. In her letter, Saroj said that the policy of integration of schools was being followed in Uttar Pradesh, which seems to be against the basic spirit of the Right to Education Act (RTE Act). "Under RTE Act, there is a provision that every child between the age of 6 to 14 years should be provided free and compulsory education within one kilometre of the nearest primary school from residence. If no school is available within a radius of one kilometre, then it is the responsibility of the govt to ensure admission of the child in the nearest school," she said. She said the current policy of the UP govt was violating the spirit of the Act. "This is hindering access to school for many children, leading more dropouts. Jobs of 2.5 lakh teachers and school staff of UP are also at risk," she said.


The Hindu
3 hours ago
- The Hindu
Decoding the Jan Suraaj Party hype
Last year, Prashant Kishor transitioned from his consultant role into the dynamic arena of electoral politics. With Bihar going to the polls in October, it will be intriguing to observe how a strategist, believed to have masterminded some important political successes, will perform when he contests an election himself. Mr. Kishor, leader of the Jan Suraaj Party (JSP), points out four factors which makes the BJP a formidable electoral force: its Hindutva ideology that serves as an emotional anchor, Narendra Modi's grand narrative of India becoming a global superpower, the creation of millions of direct beneficiaries through welfare schemes, and the sheer financial and organisational strength of the party. Mr. Kishor has asserted that to defeat BJP, one would need to defeat it at least on three of the four accounts. So, how well placed is the JSP to challenge the BJP on these factors? First, ideologically, the BJP's Hindutva claim isn't just a political position; it has become an emotional ecosystem that gives people identity, purpose, and a sense of belonging to something larger than themselves. The JSP's approach has been to focus on Bihar's regional identity and development aspirations while staying studiously secular. It is intellectually honest, sure, but could it be politically naïve given that religious identity in contemporary politics has become increasingly central to how people see themselves politically? Second, Mr. Kishor's 'Bihar Badlav (Bihar Change)' campaign is receiving traction. The messaging is positive: Bihar doesn't need to wait for Delhi's permission to prosper; the State has its own strengths and possibilities. What it needs is leadership that believes in those possibilities. This seems to be resonating with some voters. This narrative is distinct from the BJP's nationalism and the traditional Opposition's criticism. Whether it is enough remains to be seen. Third, pricking a hole in the BJP's beneficiary schemes may be tedious. When a farmer gets his PM Kisan installments, or when a woman gets her Ujjwala gas connection, or when a family gets healthcare through Ayushman Bharat, they are not just receiving benefits; they are entering into a relationship with the government that makes them stakeholders in its success. Can the JSP's promise be enough to attract the voters to vote for it? Fourth, the ability of the JSP to match the BJP's and RJD's organisational structure needs to be looked at. The JSP has been able to create some ground level connects via its leaders' padyatra, but this will be put to test particularly closer to elections. The BJP-led NDA has financial resources, RSS volunteers, sophisticated data analytics, and technological infrastructure that can micro-target individual voters. The RJD has decades of organisational depth and established networks across every village in Bihar and JSP has Mr. Kishor's strategic mind. Will that be enough to challenge the NDA and the Mahagathbandhan? Another important challenge for the JSP is about how the party will be able to challenge dynastic heirs such as Tejashwi Yadav and Chirag Paswan. What makes Mr. Yadav particularly formidable is his younger age, party's organisational strength, and experience. His welfare promises are specific and credible because he has the organisational capacity to deliver them. His focus on employment and migration directly addresses voters' primary concerns. And his consistent opposition to Nitish Kumar's alliance-hopping has given him a reputation for stability that the JSP, as a new entrant, cannot claim. The BJP may find it difficult to put up a young face given its present leadership in Bihar, but JD(U) might prop up a young face such as Nitish Kumar's son Nishant Kumar or Manish Verma, a former IAS officer. At this moment, the picture seems encouraging as the JSP is generating discussion and media attention, but also sobering, since Mr. Kishor may turn out to be an influential voice rather than a decisive force. In a fragmented electoral landscape, the JSP might eventually end up being a kingmaker if neither major alliance achieves a clear majority. This could provide it with disproportionate influence relative to its electoral performance and create opportunities for future growth. Sanjay Kumar is a Professor at the Centre for Studies of Developing Societies and Chandrachur Singh is a Professor of Political Science at Hindu College, University of Delhi. Views expressed are personal


The Hindu
6 hours ago
- The Hindu
Physical education teacher-student ratio rejigged
The physical education teacher-student ratio in schools in the State will be rejigged to 1:300 to protect teachers who had lost their posts. A meeting convened by Minister for General Education V. Sivankutty here recently reached the decision. It will be sent for the Chief Minister's approval. The physical education teacher-student ratio currently is 1:500. The meeting was held to discuss a slew of demands raised by school physical education teachers. When the 1:300 ratio is considered for upper primary (UP) classes, physical education teachers who lose their posts will be protected by clubbing the lower primary wing of the school too with the UP. To protect high school physical education teachers, the number of physical education periods in class X too will be considered. At present, one post of physical education teacher is created if there are five divisions across classes VIII and IX. Class X divisions are currently not considered for the appointment. So if there is a division fall in classes VIII and IX, then the number of periods in class X will be considered to protect the teachers. In high schools with UP section, high school physical education teachers can be clubbed with the UP wing to protect them. Physical education teachers allege that an order protecting them had been issued as a temporary arrangement in 2017 when they had staged protests to press their demands. These had been issued since then too, but their demands such as change in teacher-student ratio through amendment in the Kerala Education Rules had not been addressed. The physical education teachers have been demanding that all students in State schools receive physical education training. At present, lower primary classes have no physical education periods. Higher secondary classes have physical education periods but no teachers. There are only 1,800-odd physical education teachers in the State. Physical education teachers estimate that 85% of UP schools and 45% of high schools have no physical education teachers. They point out that 11 teachers lost their posts last year while there were more this year.