FRIDAY PRAYERS HELD PEACEFULLY AT GYANVAPI
VARANASI: The Gyanvapi mosque in Varanasi witnessed its first Friday prayers at the premises since a ‘Shivling’ was claimed to have been found by Hindu petitioners during a court-ordered survey on May 16.
“Friday namaz concluded peacefully,” said SM Yasin, joint secretary of the Anzuman Intezamia Masjid Committee that manages the Gyanvapi mosque.
“During the Friday namaz, the mosque was packed to its capacity,” said Yasin.
The place where a “Shivling” was found (according to an advocate representing the petitioners) was sealed in accordance with a local court order in Varanasi on May 16.
Yasin said alternative arrangements were made for doing wuzu (ablutions). Four drums and over 50 mugs were placed in the mosque premises.
RUDRAPUR: Nine to ten students out of 37 upper-caste students in an Uttarakhand school allegedly refused to eat midday meals again cooked by a Dalit woman, the school’s principal said on Friday, months after an identical incident at the same institution sparked nationwide condemnation and a government probe.
The principal of the government inter college (GIC), Prem Singh, said he was forced to issue transfer certificates (s) to seven students to warn them to stop the boycott. The incident was reported from Sukhidhang in Uttarakhand’s Champawat district.
“Some students have refused to eat midday meals cooked by the Dalit bhojan mata (midday mealcook). They have been bringing meals from their house. I wanted to stop such practice and make them eat together with Dalit students, therefore, I took such an action,” Singh said.
This is the second caste-based boycott in six months faced by the cook, 32-year-old Sunita Devi. In December, 40 students refused to eat meals made by her. She was sacked the next day, triggering widespread outcry. The government later reinstated her after chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami took note of the incident and the local administration stepped in.
But the boycott began again on March 9, and by 9 to 10 students in classes 6, 7 and 8, said the principal as class 8 students passed to class 9 and some new students joined class 6.
Last academic year, 66 students were in class 6 to 7 and 26 students of them were from SC. In the current academic year, 57 students are in class 6 to 8 and 37 students are from upper caste and 20 Scheduled Caste category. In December all 40 students of upper caste boycotted the midday meals. Now the number of such students has reduced to 9-10 students involved in boycotting the meals.
“I did not remove the names of upper caste students who refused to eat the meals from the college but issued the TC only as a warning so that they stop boycotting the meals prepared by the Dalit bhojan mata. I wanted them to maintain college decorum as well as harmony between the two sections,” Singh said.
“This is against my self-respect. They (students) leave no chance to insult me. I will fight for my self-respect in the future also. I will not withdraw the case lodged by me last year...” said the cook, Devi.
She was referring to a complaint she filed with police against six named and 18-20 other unnamed people in December. The Uttarakhand high court suspended the arrest of the six people named by her.
Champawat district magistrate (DM) Narendra Singh Bhandari rushed to the GIC .
“The DM and I visited the college today and talked to parents. The matter will be resolved soon. Refusing to eat midday meals is not a crime, if children don’t eat rice and bring tiffin from home, they should at least eat dal or vegetables cooked in midday meals...” chief education officer Jitendra Saxena said.
“If some children don’t want to eat midday meals in the school, how can the principal force them and then issue a TC? It is not a crime not to eat midday meals,” a parent said.
But others indicated that it is a caste-based issue.
“Bhojan mata has filed an unnecessary case against me. How can my child eat midday meals cooked by that woman? After all, it is a matter of self-respect,” said Babloo Gahtori, the parent of a student.