An incident of a Government school teacher in Chhattisgarh making obscene remarks on Shri Krishna and abusing students who fasted on Krishna Janmashtami has come to light. The incident took place in Bundapara Village Middle School, in the Kondagaon district, 200 kilometres away from the capital city of Raipur. According to media reports, the accused teacher Charan Markam has been suspended after preliminary investigation.
As per the reports, the police said that the incident occurred on Tuesday 31 August 2021 and that the villagers and the Gram Panchayat complained about the abuse of class 7 and class 8 students. Authorities said that the teacher Markam had specifically asked about those students who were fasting on the eve of Janmashtami and observing the rituals, and then allegedly picked out those students who raised their hands, and beat them.
A video had emerged on social media where the students punished by the teacher are seen narrating the incident. The video went viral on social media which caused an uproar. The students said that they were thrashed for keeping fast on the Janmashtami, and had asked them to not believe in any gods like Krishna and Saraswati.
The Collector of Kondagaon, Pushpendra Kumar Meena, said the suspension order of the accused teacher posted in the Government Middle school under the Girola Panchayat was issued after a preliminary investigation based on the complaint lodged on September 1, 2021. The Collector revealed that the Gram Panchayat and local villagers had complained about the alleged incident on Tuesday and also about the obscene remarks the teacher allegedly made on Shri Krishna. According to reports, the teacher also spread falsehood regarding Hindu Gods and Goddesses.
The Collector of Kondagaon, Pushpendra Kumar Meena also said that the villagers submitted audio as well as video evidence to prove their allegations. A government official was sent to conduct the preliminary investigation which led to the suspension of the accused teacher based on its report. The collector has asked for a report from the police for further investigation on the matter.
The suspension order made it clear that to hurt religious sentiments and spread hate is a serious offence. The authorities said that the actions of the accused teacher were in violation of the Chhattisgarh Civil Service Rules 1965 which led to his suspension. The Kondagaon police said that a case was not yet registered against the Teacher. The police said ‘We have got a report from the district administration that a case has not been registered yet but required actions would be taken after a proper investigation’.
