In a strange incident, students at a school in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, were booked for taunting a teacher and making obscene remarks about her.
The teacher, a hijab-wearing woman, filed a formal complaint, saying that she is depressed as a result of students making sexually inappropriate comments and making the videos public.
‘आई लव यू मेरी जान, ओए मैम देख तो…’
— Sachin Gupta (@sachingupta787) November 27, 2022
उत्तर प्रदेश के मेरठ में महिला टीचर पर अश्लील टिप्पणी करने वाले इन छात्रों को ‘मुकम्मल इलाज’ की जरूरत प्रतीत होती है। pic.twitter.com/zy8beLW4qe
The incident occurred in Meerut’s Ram Manohar Lohia Inter College in the Kithor Police Station area, where Aman, Kaif, and Amaltas of Class 12 openly harassed the teacher teaching in their class. Occasionally they said ‘I love you’ in class, and at times they embarrassed the teacher by making vulgar remarks during the prayer gathering.
According to the teacher, who is Muslim and wears a hijab throughout school, she is quite disturbed by the students’ behaviour. The students finally crossed the limit of her tolerance when they shared the video of harassment on social media. Fearing defamation in the classroom and now in her neighbourhood, the teacher decided to take action and notified the police. An FIR has been filed as a result.
According to inspector Arvind Mohan Sharma, 4 students including a girl have been booked under IPC Sections 354 and 500 and Section 67 of the Information Technology Act. The teacher has stated that she has been going through depression as a result of this harassment.
In the videos which have gone viral on social media, the students can be seen making obscene remarks and saying ‘I Love You’ to the teacher inside the classroom while she is teaching. Three boys can be seen making lewd remarks to the teacher while one of them has a lollipop in his mouth.
UP के मेरठ में क्लास रूम के अंदर 3 छात्रों ने महिला टीचर को “I Love U” बोला और सोशल मीडिया में इसकी Video वायरल कर दी। छात्र अतश, कैफ, अमन पर FIR हुई। टीचर डिप्रेशन में है। #Meerut
— Sachin Gupta (@sachingupta787) November 27, 2022
Video – @hindipatrakarpic.twitter.com/wIiV9G2sIz
The student can be seen licking a lollipop while making sexually inappropriate remarks about the teacher. As a hijab-wearing woman gets harassed, Ironically, women who wear hijabs are considered safer than those who do not. Women who refuse to wear hijab are also objectified as unwrapped sweets or lollipops by hijab apologists.
On social media, the lollipop allegory is especially popular among conservative Muslims. A lollipop with a swarm of flies on it is depicted, as is a covered lollipop with flies staying away from it. “You cannot avoid them, but you can protect yourself. Your Creator knows what is better for you.” the caption says.
The example goes on to argue that Muslim women who wear hijabs deserve respect, but those who do not follow the Islamic mandate of wearing a veil are akin to unwrapped lollipops and candies and should be avoided and rejected.
