In Shorts
- A private school in Kerala’s Kannur district has written to PM Modi, alleging a state directive is suppressing the singing of patriotic songs in classrooms.
- The move comes amid a controversy where the Kerala government accused the RSS of using schools for political mobilization, which the Sangh Parivar denies.
- The school’s management has urged the Prime Minister’s intervention to “safeguard the nationalist fervour” of the nation’s future generations.
KANNUR: In a move that has thrust a state-level educational debate into the national spotlight, the management of a private school in Kerala’s Kannur district has written a compelling letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, raising an alarm over what it perceives as the deliberate suppression of patriotic expression in classrooms.
The correspondence from the school authorities centers on a recent and heated controversy in the state. It began when the Kerala Government’s Education Department issued a directive cautioning schools against allowing activities by political and religious organizations on campus. This order was reportedly issued after the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government alleged that the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) was utilizing school premises for its recruitment and mobilization drives—a claim the RSS has firmly denied.
However, the school’s letter to the PM frames the issue through a different lens. It argues that the state’s directive is being interpreted in a manner that stifles the very spirit of nationalism. The management expresses a specific fear that songs celebrating the nation, including the national anthem and other patriotic hymns, are being quietly phased out of daily school routines.
“Can’t our children sing patriotic songs?” the letter poses this pointed question to the Prime Minister, capturing the core of their apprehension. The school leadership stated that they feel a profound responsibility to instill love for the country in their students and view the current situation as a direct threat to that mission.
Emphasizing the critical role of education in nation-building, the letter appeals for the Prime Minister’s direct intervention. It calls upon the central government to implement what it describes as “stringent measures” to ensure that the “nationalist fervour among the future generation of the country is safeguarded.”
This development amplifies an ongoing political tussle in Kerala, pitting the state’s CPI(M)-led government against the BJP-RSS machinery. The school’s decision to bypass the state apparatus and appeal directly to the highest office in the country underscores the deepening ideological rift over educational content and the definition of patriotism itself. As the letter makes its way to New Delhi, it remains to be seen what response it will garner, and whether this local dispute will evolve into a larger national conversation.
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