No politics on school premises, govt tells managements after BJP's CAA meet

The Maharashtra government's school education department on Monday issued a notice to all schools in the state asking them not to use their premises for hosting any political event, a move which has invited criticism from the BJP.

Sources in the department said the notice has been issued to the management of schools to ensure students are kept away from any political event.

The move comes after it was reported that the BJP had organised a talk on the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) at a school in the Matunga area last week.

Education Minister Varsha Gaikwad said, The notice has been issued cautioning schools to keep students away from political events.

However, former school education minister and BJP leader Ashish Shelar called the action "politically motivated".

It (CAA) is an Act approved by both the houses of Parliament and signed by the President. Such instructions are uncalled for, he said.

The BJPs youth wing as well as the RSS-affiliated Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad have been holding meetings with college students to make them aware about the "benefits" of CAA, that aims to give Indian citizenship to persecuted non -Muslim refugees from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan.

Similarly, the Congress, Left parties and some organisations have started their own separate campaigns to sensitise college students about "ill-effects" of the CAA and the proposed National Register of Citizens (NRC).