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Journalism of Courage
After a controversy over its May 20 email to alumni asking them to change the name of Gyanvapi Mosque to Gyanvapi Temple on Google Maps, New Horizon Public School in Bengaluru has issued a clarification, saying that the email was sent “without proper screening procedures”.
“Reports of the email sent out about disrespecting certain religious sentiments have come to our notice and the issue is being handled with the highest priority. We wish to clarify that the email was sent without proper screening procedures that is required of all our email communications. We take pride in the cultural and religious diversity of India, we practice the same in the letter and spirit every day with everything we do at our school,” the school said.
The email read, “Request to everyone. Please update on Google map as a Gyanvapi Temple instead of gyanvapi mosque. You are requested to do it and ask our Hindu brothers and sisters to do it till google update this changes. Please open the google map. Search for Gyanvapi Temple but you will see it as gyanvapi mosque. Touch on /Click on – Suggest edit. Touch on – Change name or other details write as “Gyanvapi Temple” and mention as “Hindu Temple”. submit it. Gyanvapi Masjid.”
Preethi Krishnamoorthy, an alumnus based in Hawaii, received the controversial email on May 20. She even took to social media to expose the school’s “shocking” conduct. “I was shocked when I received the email, not because it was sent by my school but because such an extreme email was sent by a school. A school is supposed to teach its students to think critically, so they can grow up to be reasonable individuals capable of differentiating between right and wrong based on the information presented to them. Any educational institution should be a place for free thought, unlike the email that is brainwashing the present and future generations into unthinking obedience,” she said.
The email was a part of the alumni emails that the students who have signed up for receive. According to Krishnamoorthy, the school had also sent an email during the release of ‘The Kashmir Files’. The email contained texts encouraging the alumni to watch the movie and also equated some of the incidents and characters of the movie to Mahabharata. Only 3-4 newsletters are sent to students in the course of a year. Most of the newsletters are related to the meets and events that have happened in the school.
An alumnus, who did not wish to be named, said the email on the Gyanvapi mosque controversy has disturbed her personally. “The first email on ‘The Kashmir Files’ was very weird and I found it strange that a school is promoting a movie. The second email on the mosque was very disturbing. I had stopped reading news after the controversies over azaan and halal and now this incident has disturbed me further. I have unsubscribed the newsletter. A lot of my school memories are now destroyed after this incident. I am feeling let down,” said the alumnus.
According to officials at the Kothanur police station, the school’s management claimed that a fake WhatsApp group has been created and the alleged letter is being circulated on different groups. Although the management has reportedly approached the police, no case has been registered so far.
