The hitherto peaceful agitation against the private schools owners turned violent on Friday with incidences of scuffles and damages to property. The incidences occurred in two prominent schools of the city. In the first incidence, the activists of Akhil Bhartiya Vidhyarthi Parishad (ABVP) protested against fee increase in front of the Children academy school located at Chakrata Road. The ABVP members barged into the school premise and allegedly engaged in destroying the school.
The school management complained that the activists of youth wing of BJP pushed the gate keeper of the school to force their entry into the school premises. They alleged that the hooligans engaged in arson inside the office of the school and damaged flower pots, furniture and computers. later, the school management lodged a complaint in the Dhara police post under Kotwali police station area. On the compliant the police raided the city office of ABVP and rounded up four members.
The State president of ABVP Ramakant Srivastav told The Pioneer that the organisation is on the path of agitation against the hegemony of private schools from many days. He said the ABVP activists in different parts of the State have given memorandums to the education department officials and Education Minister but the State Government has done nothing to address the genuine grievance of the people due to which the members of the organisation are feeling dejected and angry.
In another incident, the Uttarakhand Parents Association has alleged that some goons on behest of school management of Indian academy located in the Nathanpur area of the city attacked the peaceful agitators. The president of parents association of the school Arif Khan told The Pioneer that the association was organising a peaceful meeting outside the school when some goons started misbehaving and when objected they started beating the parents.
He said one of the parents, Subhash Saxena was injured in the attack. The goons fled when local people intervened. Khan said that members of the association were getting threatening calls from some days but they never took them seriously. The parents association lodged a complaint in Raipur police station against the assailants.
Continuing their struggle against the private school owners a delegation of Parents association met the Chief Education Officer SP Khali on Friday. The delegation demanded that the education department should implement the Government order regarding the private schools in letter and spirit. Khali told the delegation that District Magistrate of Dehradun would convene a meeting of Principals of private schools on Saturday.