Zia-ul Haq faces sedition charge

Lucknow: Zia-ul Haq, the school manager of MA Convent who had imposed a ban on the national anthem, was arrested on late Sunday night and a case of sedition has been registered against him. The district administration has also set up a three-member committee to probe the incident.

At least eight teachers of the school, including principal Ritu Tripathi, had resigned on Sunday as a sign of protest against the diktat. Principal Ritu Tripathi had said that she went to the school management to seek permission for organising the singing of the national anthem for Independence Day but she was told that such events have not been organised in the school ever since it was established and will not be permitted this year too.

“When I asked the reason for this, the manager said that one line in the national anthem — ‘Bharat Bhagya Vidhaata’—was against the tenets of Islam. He said he is of the belief that people write their own destiny and it is not the nation which determines one’s fate,” she said.

“Since we were asked to either fall in line or leave, we decided to leave,” the principal said. The school has around 300 students and is not recognised by the primary education department which makes its functioning illegal.

The Basic Shiksha Adhikari of Allahabad, Jaikaran Yadav, said that action was being taken against the school as well and also against concerned officials who ahve violated the norms.