DNA Special: Will schools in India now operate on the basis of religion?

When you were in school, had one of your colleagues or friends urged the principal to allow him to pray in class? When you were in school, did you ever try to find out what religion the child sitting next to you belongs to or which caste is he from?

All the children in school come wearing the same uniform and instead of caste, religion riches, and poverty, this uniform is their identity. But, in a school in Karnataka, some Muslim students put pressure on the school administration to allow them to pray in the class. And after this, prayers were offered inside the class in this school. Similarly, in another inter-college in Karnataka, some girls made this demand. They wanted to wear a hijab and attend classes. But when the girl was asked to come in the uniform of the school, she sat on a dharna. Religious fundamentalism is also being created among school children. Imagine how big an explosion there would be in our society if the country's schools became laboratories of religion.

On January 21, in a government school in Karnataka, Jum'ah prayers were offered by some children in the class. The school is located in the Kolar district of Karnataka and it is alleged that children were allowed to offer Namaz by the school management. We have also received a video of the incident, in which some children are wearing caps and are collectively offering Namaz. After watching this video for a moment, you will feel that this prayer is being read in a mosque but the truth is that these religious rituals took place in a school, which until now always set an example of equality in society.

It is alleged that for the last two months, these children were praying Jum'ah prayers in this school, in the same way, every Friday. Apart from this, some children also say that, when they opposed it, they were told that prayer is sacred and it would be a sin to prevent children from praying. At present, an explanation has been sought from the school by the district education department in the matter and the matter is also being investigated but the police said they have not registered an FIR. That is, this case might get suppressed after a few days but will this problem end if the matter is suppressed?

Last year, a new rule was issued by the Taliban in Afghanistan, which said that girls would not be allowed to enter schools and colleges without a hijab and then a lot of girls there opposed it through social media. But, now, you only think, in what direction is India going?

On the one hand, some girl students in secular India are demanding that they want to come to their college wearing a hijab while this bigotry is being opposed in Afghanistan. Both these incidents show how poison is being mixed in India's school system and an attempt is being made to turn the country's schools into laboratories of religion.

So far, there was only one system of schools left in our country, which survived the transition of religious fanaticism because children are treated equally in schools. You will see children in schools in uniform. All the children go to school wearing shirts of the same color- pants, ties, and shoes of the same color and that's what they call equality. What this means is that when children are in one uniform, it eliminates the discrimination between rich and poor, caste and religion, and the feeling of equality remains.

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But imagine what will happen if schools do not have this uniformity? Then the children who are rich will come to school wearing expensive clothes and those who are poor will not have good clothes. Children who follow Islam will start to wear a cap keep a long beard and demand to pray in their class. 

The children who are Hindus will come to the school wearing tilak and demand to worship in the class. Children who believe in Christianity will start wearing a locket with the Cross of Jesus Christ and there may be a demand to put a statue of Jesus Christ in the school and the children who believe in Sikhism will also ask to perform their religious rituals in school.

Now the question is, does India want to make its schools a religious place? And if so, then what will be the importance of temples, mosques, churches, and gurudwaras in this country? And think, what is the ultimate function of religion in schools?

One of the reasons behind this problem is that there is not much clarity about it in the constitution and laws of our country. Article 14 of the Constitution mentions that all citizens of India shall be equally protected by the laws of the country. This means that the government and the administrative system of this country will treat the people equally under the same circumstances. But it does not mention whether children will be free to perform their religious rituals in educational institutions and whether the principle of equality will apply here or not.

Like the Constitution, the laws of our country do not have clarity on this. At present, there is no single law in the country that gives any instructions regarding the uniform of children in schools. In government schools, it is decided by the Central and state governments. Whereas in private schools, this decision depends on the management of that school.

According to the 2011 census, there are about 80 percent Hindus in India, 14% are Muslims. 2.3 percent Christians, 1.7 percent Sikhs, 0.7 percent Buddhists, and 0.4 percent of Jains live in this country.

When the Constitution of India came into force 72 years ago, Dr BR Ambedkar recognised the root cause of this problem. He had said that in a conservative society, religion may govern every aspect of life, but in a modern democracy, the religious sphere should not reduce the right. Inequality and discrimination cannot be overcome. That is why the country adopts the principle of equality, not giving more emphasis to religion.

This question came to the fore in France a few years ago. Then in 2004, it enacted this law that children studying in government schools there will not wear any religious sign, cap, locket, hijab, and burqa that shows their religion.

Today, India needs a similar law and this will be possible only when our country adopts the Uniform Civil Code, which says that if the country is one, then the law should also be one for all religions. Article 44 of the Constitution itself directs that a 'Uniform Civil Code' be implemented throughout the country for all religions at an appropriate time.