Deschooling Lucknow

Lucknow is not new to the exertions of vigilante groups claiming affiliation to so-called Hindu organisations and projecting themselves as protectors of public morality and the country8217;s cultural traditions. They arrogate to themselves the right to decree how students should dress and conduct themselves. Every Valentine8217;s Day unspools familiar footage of shops being targeted, cards being burnt and couples being terrorised.

But even by these unedifying standards, Sunday8217;s rampage in the precincts of Lucknow8217;s Loreto Convent represented a new low. Young ruffians, claiming to be activists of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha and waving BJP flags, breached the security of a private educational institution, vandalised its property and terrorised its staff. So obviously misguided was this campaign that even the BJP found it necessary to distance itself from it. A wise move for a party already enmeshed in the ugly student politics of Ujjain which had recently claimed the life of Professor H.S. Sabharwal. It does the image of the main opposition party of the country little good to be perceived as the recruitment ground for political lumpens and the sooner it brings the stormier elements within its youth league to line, the better it is for its own credibility.

The incident also exposed the lack of good sense on the part of the authorities of Loreto Convent. Schools run by Christian organisations in this country have a proud legacy of providing a good, affordable, modern education to large numbers of students over the years. Unleashing strange cultists like Nobo Kumar Mandal 8212; claiming to embody the divine 8212; on impressionable young minds is not just curious, it is unacceptable. It cannot be condoned even on the grounds of imparting spiritual education. Indeed, the incident exhibited a general lack of education. A city known for its syncretic traditions and modern outlook like Lucknow deserves better.