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News Topical, Digital Desk : The belt scandal at the BSA office in Sitapur, Uttar Pradesh, continues to escalate rather than abate. On September 23rd, the controversy intensified after CCTV footage of Brijendra Kumar Verma, headmaster of Nadwa Primary School, arriving at the BSA office, throwing a file, and then taking out his belt and beating BSA Akhilesh Pratap Singh went viral on social media.
In this case, the BSA filed an FIR against the headmaster under serious charges and sent him to jail. However, the video of him being taken to jail raised questions. The video showed swelling on the headmaster, Brijendra Kumar Verma's face, leading to suspicions that he too had been beaten.
After this, BJP MLA from Mahmudabad, Asha Maurya, and former SP MLA Narendra Singh Verma once again came face to face, and a barrage of accusations and counter-accusations ensued. The matter also took on a political twist, with the connection to teacher Avantika Gupta.
Lock found hanging on the school
On September 24th, when the children arrived at school, they found the gate locked. They then, along with their parents, protested at the school gate, demanding they only study with Brijendra Kumar Verma. During this time, teacher Avantika Gupta also came under attack from both the children and parents.
Meanwhile, SP leader Dr. Rahul Shukla also reached the school. SP chief Akhilesh Yadav also raised political heat by posting on social media about the issue. In fact, the tension between the teachers at Nadwa Primary School has been ongoing for months. The teachers posted there are divided into two factions within the teachers' union.
Principal Brijendra Verma and teacher Santosh Verma are brothers-in-law and members of the Uttar Pradesh Teachers' Association, while teacher Avantika Gupta is a member of the National Educational Federation. This factionalism has reached the political circles of Mahmudabad.
The government has decided to merge the schools.
Meanwhile, the state government decided to merge schools with low student numbers, a decision opposed by the Samajwadi Party. Former SP minister Narendra Singh Verma raised the issue on his Facebook wall and commented. Teacher Santosh Verma shared Narendra Singh Verma's post and shared his thoughts.
Using a screenshot of this post, the matter reached BJP MLA Asha Maurya. She wrote to the BSA, accusing the teacher of engaging in political and anti-government activities.
BSA sought answers from the teacher
Based on the BJP MLA's letter, the BSA first sought an explanation from the concerned teacher. On September 20th, teacher Santosh Verma submitted a written response, which the BSA, dissatisfied with, suspended him the same day. Following Santosh Verma's suspension, pressure was also exerted on Principal Brijendra Verma.
Phoolchand Singh, a resident of Lucknow district, filed a complaint against him through IGRS. He requested certified copies of all bills and vouchers related to the school's composite grant expenditures over the past ten years.
Citing this complaint, the BSA ordered Brijendra Verma to provide a written explanation by September 23rd. The ABSA arrived at the school and conducted an investigation that lasted several hours. During the investigation, parents and children recorded statements in support of the headmaster.
The headmaster issued a notice to the assistant teacher.
Meanwhile, on September 18th, Principal Brijendra Verma issued a notice to Assistant Teacher Avantika Gupta. It stated, "As per the BSA's instructions, you did not participate in the theory exams from July 17th to 22nd and in the flying squads for the exams from July 28th to August 20th. Submit a certificate from wherever you were from August 21st to September 20th, only then will your attendance be signed."
The teacher, finding this insulting, complained to the BSA. The BSA summoned Brijendra Verma to his office on Tuesday. Amid the intense political turmoil, the headmaster lost his composure and caused a major scandal with the BSA. Meanwhile, reels of teacher Avantika Gupta also began going viral on social media.
The MLA reached the school with a heavy police force.
On September 25th, MLA Asha Maurya arrived at the Primary School in Nadwa in the presence of a large police force and had the gates broken. During this time, the children remained weeping and adamant about not attending school.
Congress MP from Sitapur, Rakesh Rathore, also entered the scene. He raised questions about the action taken against the headmaster. Meanwhile, the headmaster's wife, Seema Verma, also released her first statement.
Teacher suspended
Meanwhile, the BSA suspended teacher Avantika Gupta. Shortly after, the jailed headmaster, Brijendra Kumar Verma, was also suspended. The government has launched an investigation into the matter. Meanwhile, an audio recording of the conversation between the BSA and the headmaster also went viral.
The headmaster who beat the student with a belt received no relief from the court. The Chief Justice of India (CJM) rejected his bail plea. The Primary Teachers' Association also met and decided that on September 26th, a delegation would travel to Lucknow and the jail to demand a high-level investigation into this controversial case.
The teachers' union will now meet with the jailed headmaster and, along with state-level officials, will approach the government to demand an investigation by non-departmental officials. It's difficult to say how far the controversy will go, but the entire matter has become a topic of discussion across the state.
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