52 private schools to remain shut today

MUMBAI: Around 52 private unaided schools in Mumbai will be shut on Thursday to protest against Tuesday’s lathi-charge by the police on teachers in Aurangabad. A

MUMBAI: Around 52 private unaided schools in Mumbai will be shut on Thursday to protest against Tuesday’s lathi-charge by the police on teachers in Aurangabad. A few other schools will be closed as well to show their solidarity.

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More than 100 teachers had resorted to stone-pelting during an agitation of unaided schools close to the venue of the Maharashtra cabinet meeting on Tuesday. A constable was killed and nine others were injured in the clash. The police rounded up 35 teachers and held them in custody.

Condemning the incident, the Unaided School Teachers Action Committee, comprising more than 5,000 schools across state including 52 in Mumbai, announced schools will remain shut until the teachers are released and their demands are accepted. “Teachers across the state are supporting us. Many schools were closed on Wednesday as well,” said Prashant Redij, its spokesperson.

Other schools will display black flags as a sign of protest. Associations such as Shikshak Bharati and Maharashtra Action Committee for Teachers Rights, which consist of aided schools as well, will meet on Thursday to come up with a plan of action. “We support the bandh. After the meeting, we will decide on what steps need to be taken,” said PM Raut, member of the action committee.

State education minister Vinod Tawde has urged schools not to participate in the bandh. “People participating in the agitation in Aurangabad on Tuesday were using foul language, which raises the question on whether the participants were teachers or goons hired by school owners,” he said, adding that chief minister Devendra Fadnavis has initiated an inquiry into the incident.