PROBE ORDERED AS GOVT SCHOOL FOUND OBSERVING FRIDAY CLOSURE

GORAKHPUR : Deoria district magistrate Sujit Kumar ordered a probe after it was found that the government-run Navalpur primary school was observing weekly closure every Friday, instead of Sunday, since its inception in 2008, officials said. The school had been following the practice for the last ten years as over 90% of the students were Muslims and their parents wanted the school to remain closed on Friday for Juma Namaz (prayer), school principal Khursheed Ahmed told basic shiksha adhikari (BSA) Santosh Kumar Dev, who was asked by DM to probe the matter and submit a report in three days. The district administration swung into action after an anonymous caller informed the block education officer (Salempur) Gyan Chandra Mishra about the matter on Friday.

Today, the need is not to hold a kisan rally, rather the government should tell how and when they are going to give the proposed MSP to the farmers. AKHILESH YADAV, SP chief

LUCKNOW: Without taking any names, Samajwadi Party national president Akhilesh Yadav criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi and advised Congress president Rahul Gandhi over the famous Rahul-Modi hug, using a famous Urdu couplet to make his point.

After his speech during the debate on the no confidence motion in Parliament on Friday, Rahul Gandhi had hugged Modi.

Modi, in his speech, hit out at Rahul Gandhi over the hug.

In a tweet from his official Twitter account, the Samajwadi Party chief referred to a famous Urdu couplet penned by poet Bashir Badr: Koi haath bhi na milayega, jo gale miloge tapaak se, ye naye mijaaz ka shahar hai, zara fasle se mila karo (no one will return your greetings if you embrace them promptly; moods are different now; maintain your distance).

Yadav also questioned the need for the farmers’ rally addressed by Modi in Shahjahanpur on Saturday afternoon and said, “Today, the need is not to hold a kisan rally, rather the government should tell how and when they are going to give the proposed MSP to the farmers. Also the government should reply why the markets proposed by us like grain market (Anaaj Mandi), vegetable market (sabzi mandi) and the market of Greater Noida are not yet built. The farmers are still waiting for their loan waiver.”

In a press statement later Akhilesh said the PM had made a mockery of farmers through his rally. He said: “It is no secre that the farmers have suffered the most in the BJP rule.”

He said the farmers were eagerly waiting to vote BJP ou through 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

The Congress and SP chiefs despite a failed and unsuccessfu electoral tie-up in the 2017 UP assembly elections have dis played camaraderie. The lates tweet is also seen in political cir cles as an advice from a prospec tive ally who disapproves of a sudden gesture by Gandhi to Modi.