By Nikita Jain
A school in Delhi cancelled an Independence Day address by Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) professor and veteran academic Zoya Hasan, last minute on Friday, after Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) members gathered outside the premises in protest.
The incident happened at Sardar Patel Vidyalaya, where Hasan was called as a chief guest. She was to address the students, be a part of scholarship award ceremony and was scheduled to hoist the national flag. The invitation issued by the school said the programme was to begin at 10 am at its Lodi Estate campus.
The Delhi Police, however, claimed that they received a call from the school informing them of the security threat faced by Hasan.
On the other hand, sources close to Hasan and the school said that the Delhi Police “forced to cancel at the last minute claiming a threat to her security, because some 10-15 VHP had gathered at the gate”.
Accordingly, more police force gathered at the school premises, although the school had not called them.
An alumni of the school said that they had received information about the incident and are looking into the issue. They also said that the school programme continued with disruption with a new chief guest.
Gujarat Education Society (GES) president and school alumna Shveta Kalyanwala replaced Hasan. GES is the parent body that manages the school.
“It is the first time in the history of SPV that this event will not be held. The principal and teachers argued with police at length but to no avail,” an alumni of the school added.
According to another former student, the police allegedly reached Hasan’s home and did not allow her to attend the event. “It is shocking. Previous years we had Rekha Gupta and Amit Shah as chief guests and despite heavy disruptive security the programme continued. What happened this time is outrageous,” the alumni added.
This story was originally published in maktoobmedia.com. Read the full story here.
