Deepening divide

THE disturbing video clip in which a teacher of a private school in Uttar Pradesh is seen sowing the seeds of communal bias and violence in the impressionable minds of her students is a reflection of a social situation that is, sadly, contrary to the national motto of ‘unity in diversity’. That she should point out the Muslim identity of the boy and humiliate him by making his classmates slap him for not learning maths tables is particularly perturbing for two reasons. One, a teacher articulated a reprehensible thought, stemming from a deeply entrenched religious divide. Two, her innocent eight-year-old students were easily taken in by her communal remark.

Not surprisingly, the clip has drawn flak from various quarters, including the authorities concerned, child rights bodies and Opposition parties. Even as the father of the victimised child has chosen to take him out of that school, a thorough investigation into the case is called for. If found guilty of inciting hatred, the teacher should be given exemplary punishment that would serve as a warning to all those who look at people through a communal prism, especially those belonging to the disadvantaged or minority sections of society.

That Islamophobia is becoming the elephant in the classroom is evident from the increasing frequency of such cases being reported. Last December, the video clip of a Muslim student of Manipal University in Karnataka confronting his teacher for comparing him with Ajmal Kasab had gone viral. In this atmosphere of political polarisation, educational institutes should set an example by preaching and practising communal harmony. Otherwise, the social fabric of our country would be in danger of becoming tattered.