On Friday, an unusual song rang out from FD High School in the Muslim-dominated Juhapura area in Ahmedabad rural district. The students were singing ‘Manushya tu bada mahaan hai’, a song closely linked to the RSS.
The song was among two handed over by educational officials to the 472 schools in the district — granted, private and government secondary and higher secondary —- as part of a new mandatory morning ritual of students singing motivational songs.
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The other song was ‘Vaishnava jan to’, which is considered as one of Mahatma Gandhi’s favourites.
“In a recent meeting with the principals, it was decided to include these motivational songs in the morning assembly — three days a week,” said DEO (Rural) M I Joshi.
“Not only this, the teachers have to explain the meaning of each word in these songs during the assembly to students. It is for the betterment of students who should be get value education, and one cannot think of any better songs than these,” he added.
The initiative kicked off to coincide with a state-wide painting competition on “Mahatma Gandhi and Cleanliness” to mark Gandhi’s 67th death anniversary.
But the inclusion of the RSS-linked song has drawn criticism from a senior office-bearer of the FD Education Society which runs 24 schools in Urdu, Gujarati and English medium, mostly in areas with a significant Muslim population such as Juhapura, Jamalpur and Dariyapur.
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Shafee Maniar, vice chairman of F D Education society, said, “Songs with religious notions attached should not be forced upon schools like ours which have an entire population from a particular religion. What if we had students from other religions and asked them to follow our prayers and rituals?”
Mohammad Hussain Gena, principal of FD High School, Juhapura, said, “These two songs — ‘Manushya tu bada mahaan hai’ and ‘Vaishnav jan to’ — were given to us by the DEO’s office in a pen drive so that these could be played for students. Since these songs are new to the children, we arranged a workshop where a teacher explained the meaning of these songs to them. Now, these would be incorporated in our morning assembly schedule.”
Apart from schools in the rural district, municipal schools in Ahmedabad too have been asked to follow this routine. “Our students are well-versed in these songs so we do not face any problem in them reciting ‘Manushya tu bada mahaan hai’ that is now a part of almost every big or small event,” said Ahmedabad Municipal Council (AMC) school board chairman Jagdish Bhavsar.
DEO Joshi confirmed that the “entire DEO office was on inspection rounds across schools” to ensure that the new directives were implemented.
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“I myself visited ten schools. Other officials have been deputed to visit schools in various areas,” said Joshi.
An official who was part of one such inspection team on Friday said that district officials would submit a report on the initiative to the Gujarat Education Department.
Ritu Sharma is an Assistant Editor with The Indian Express' Gujarat bureau, an editorial position that reflects her experience and Authority in regional journalism. With over a decade of concentrated reporting experience, she is a highly Trustworthy and specialized journalist, especially noted for her Expertise in the education sector across Gujarat and previously Chandigarh.
Expertise
Primary Authority (Education): With over ten years of dedicated reporting on education in both Gujarat and Chandigarh, Ritu Sharma is a foremost authority on educational policy, institutional governance, and ground realities from "KG to PG." Her coverage includes:
Higher Education: In-depth scrutiny of top institutions like IIM-Ahmedabad (controversies over demolition/restoration of heritage architecture), IIT-Bombay (caste discrimination issues), and new initiatives like international branch campuses in GIFT City.
Schooling & Policy: Detailed coverage of government schemes (Gyan Sadhana School Voucher Scheme), the implementation and impact of the Right to Education (RTE) Act, teacher recruitment issues, and the impact of national policies like the NEP.
Student Welfare: Reporting on critical issues such as suicide allegations due to caste discrimination, and the challenges faced by students (e.g., non-delivery of NAMO tablets). ... Read More
