Lakhimpur Kheri: A viral video showing a collection of basic school workbooks loaded onto a scrap dealer’s vehicle in the Pallia block has ignited a heated controversy. The Pallia block education officer (BEO), Nagendra Chaudhary, escalated the situation by filing an FIR with the Pallia Kotwali station, citing a local journalist’s mobile number as the source of the viral video.
The workbooks in question were reportedly intended for distribution among young students in Kheri’s basic schools.
BEO Nagendra Chaudhary, in his FIR, expressed concern that the viral video was tarnishing the image of the basic education department, the administration, and the government.
The alleged misappropriation of free school workbooks prompted Kheri district’s basic education officer (BSA), Pravin Tiwari, to take swift action. On Wednesday, he initiated an investigation into the matter.
BSA Pravin Tiwari said, “A four-member committee, consisting of BEO Bhagwant Rao, BEO Ashish Kumar Pandey, BEO Subhash Chandra Verma, and district coordinator, MIS Pushpendra Srivastava, has been established to thoroughly investigate the incident and submit their findings within 10 days.”
Tiwari further noted that efforts were underway to recover the claimed workbooks that were loaded onto the truck. He clarified that no additional workbooks were discovered during the inspection of the scrap dealer’s shop. The next course of action will be determined based on the report provided by the investigative team.
The inclusion of the mobile number of Pallia-based journalist Shishir Shukla in the FIR, attributed to his forwarding of the viral video to BEO Nagendra for verification, has drawn criticism from the journalistic community.
{{/usCountry}}The inclusion of the mobile number of Pallia-based journalist Shishir Shukla in the FIR, attributed to his forwarding of the viral video to BEO Nagendra for verification, has drawn criticism from the journalistic community.
{{/usCountry}}A delegation of local journalists met with Kheri district magistrate Mahendra Bahadur Singh and Superintendent of Police GP Saha on Wednesday to express their concerns. They argued that involving journalists in such police proceedings merely to authenticate information from various sources would hinder their reporting responsibilities.
Meanwhile, BEO Pallia Nagendra Chaudhary clarified on Wednesday that his police complaint did not implicate any specific press reporter. He explained that the mentioned mobile number was solely indicative of how he received the information, with no underlying negative intent.