Kerala’s Marxist Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has issued instructions to take action against the headmaster and manager of a Government-aided higher secondary school in Palakkad district over the issue of RSS Sarsanghchalak Mohan Bhagwat unfurling the national flag at the school compound last Independence Day. He has also asked the police to examine whether criminal proceedings could be initiated in the matter.
The Chief Minister reportedly directed the Director of Public Instruction to take action against the authorities of the Karnaki Amman Higher Secondary School at Vadakkumthala in Palakkad for allowing Bhagwat to hoist the Tricolor in the school on August 15 in violation of rules and for not ensuring the singing of the national anthem after the flag-hoisting ceremony. The RSS chief had unfurled the Tricolor allegedly despite an official instruction given to the school against it.
According to the Government, existing rules do not allow leaders of political parties and organizations to unfurl the national flag at Government-owned or Government-aided schools. Only the school heads and department heads are allowed to do this and the school had allegedly allowed Bhagwat to hoist the national flag in violation of the rule.
The school has also been accused of violating the Flag Code of India 2002 by failing to ensure the singing of national anthem after the unfurling of the Tricolor. Instead of singing the national anthem after hoisting the flag, the national song, Vande Mataram, was allegedly sung. However, school authorities reportedly said the move against it was part of score-settling.
Education Minister C Raveendranath of the CPI(M) said action would be taken in the matter on the basis of the report of the District Educational Officer in Palakkad. “The Government would view any kind of interference in the educational section, especially communal interference, extremely seriously,” he told newsmen on Friday.
The Palakkad District Collector had issued a memo to the school authorities saying that it was inappropriate for a political leader – Mohan Bhagwat – to hoist the national flag at the school. The memo had also said that only an elected representative or the headmaster/principal of the school could do so but not a political leader.