In a video gone viral on social media, a student said that the teacher made derogatory remarks about the holiest Islamic sites of Makkah and Madinah and the Black Stone (Hajr-e Aswad), a rock set into the eastern corner of the Holy Ka’ba
Team Clarion
NEW DELHI — Barely a couple of days after the slap gate case in Uttar Pradesh’s Muzaffarnagar shook the conscience of the nation and sparked a global outcry, a lady teacher in Delhi allegedly made Islamophobic remarks targeting Muslim students.
Teacher Hema Gulati of the Government Sarvodaya Bal Vidyalaya in the national capital’s Gandhi Nagar locality allegedly hurled communal slurs at some Muslim students in her class on August 23. Complaints were filed against her obnoxious comments two days later.
The Delhi Police, media reports said, on Tuesday booked the teacher for her communal remarks.
Parents of the students approached the Delhi Police and Directorate of Education to complain about the teacher for verbally abusing the children and using religious slurs in the class. A group of students and their families protested outside the school.
“She told our boys that Muslims are bad and spoke extensively about our religious texts, worship places… She told the class that Muslims use animal skin at their religious places. The things said in the class are horrible and make no sense. She targeted the students and told them Muslims haven’t done anything for the country since the Independence…” said a family member of one of the students.
In a video gone viral on social media, a student said that the teacher made derogatory remarks about the holiest Islamic sites of Makkah and Madinah and the Black Stone (Hajr-e Aswad), a rock set into the eastern corner of the Holy Ka’ba.
The Holy Ka’ba is a cubicle structure considered by Muslims everywhere to be the most sacred spot on Earth.
“The teacher told me that you slaughter animals and eat them. If someone slaughters and eats you, how will you feel,” said a Class IX Muslim student.
Another student said that the teacher told him that their Qur’an was nothing. “Our Geeta is everything.”
The teacher, it is claimed, also told Muslim students that they were not Indians.
“During Partition, you did not go to Pakistan. You stayed in India. You have no contribution to India’s freedom,” the complaint quoted the teacher as telling students.
Talking to the media, Kausar, the mother of two students, demanded the immediate sacking of the teacher and banning her from teaching anywhere.
“You should not talk about Islam which you are not aware of. She should not make such statements that Ka’ba is black and there is darkness under the Ka’ba. You don’t fear when you sacrifice animals. The Qur’an is nothing. How will you feel when your hand and throat are cut off? She should not make such statements. It’s not the job of a teacher to cause discord among the children,” said Kausar.
She said two of her children study at that school, in Class VII and IV respectively. If the teacher goes unpunished, other teachers will get emboldened and they will also speak things like this, she said.
“We demand that the teacher be removed from the school, she should not teach in any school because she will do the same wherever she goes,” Kausar said.
The police said they booked Hema Gulati under Indian Penal Code (IPC) Sections 153 A (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion…), 295 A (deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs) and 298 (uttering words, etc., with deliberate intent to wound the religious feelings). They said strict legal action would be taken against the teacher.
Talking to ANI about the incident, DCP Shahdara Rohit Meena said: “We received a complaint about a school teacher using some religious words before students. We have taken cognisance of the matter. Our Juvenile Welfare Officer, along with counselors, is counseling. Legal action will be taken. There are 2-3 such students, so we are counseling them all. With true facts, we will register a case under appropriate sections. It is a government school.”
