Damoh administration razes portion of school linked to headscarf row

The Damoh municipality had served a notice to the school over illegal construction of the fourth floor of its building three days ago

Bhopal/Sagar: Administration in Madhya Pradesh’s Damoh district on Tuesday demolished one floor of the Ganga Jamuna Higher Secondary School claiming it was constructed illegally, even as the school remains in the eye of a controversy over allegations of girl students allegedly being forced to wear a headscarf.

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The Damoh municipality had served a notice to the school over illegal construction of the fourth floor of its building three days ago, senior officials said.

“The school administration replied and accepted that fourth floor was constructed without permission, so we initiated the process of demolition,” Bhaiyalal Singh, chief municipal officer, Damoh, said. “The papers of building permission of other parts of the school are also being verified.”

No statement was issued by the school till late on Tuesday.

On May 30, there was outrage by Hindu right-wing groups over a poster outside the school celebrating performance of 18 students in Class 10 board examination, showed girls, irrespective of their religion, wearing headscarves.

Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on June 2 referred to poet-philosopher Iqbal as he alleged that the school administration was “teaching poetry of a man who talked about the division of the country”. “Such acts won’t be allowed in Madhya Pradesh,” the chief minister added.

Meanwhile, the district police have slapped sections of the Madhya Pradesh Freedom of Religion Act against 13 school administrators, who have been booked under sections 295 (injuring or defiling place of worship with intent to insult the religion of any class) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), Damoh superintendent of police Rakesh Singh said.

The police have already arrested three accused — school principal Afsha Khan, mathematics teachers Anas Athar and school staff Rustam Ali — in connection with the case.

“We are still looking for the remaining 10 accused,” a police officer said, requesting anonymity.