Latest news with #Section163
Indian Express
17 hours ago
- Politics
- Indian Express
Roll back Ordinance on fee hike by private schools in Delhi, hold public consultations, say protesting parents
The Cabinet nod to Delhi School Education (Transparency in Fixation and Regulation of Fees) Ordinance, 2025, without public consultation, was one of the key contentions raised as hundreds of parents gathered at Chhatrasal Stadium in North Delhi on Saturday morning to protest arbitrary fee hikes by private schools in the Capital. Alleging harassment of students by such schools, the parents claimed that they have been subjected to years of unapproved fee hikes. The demonstration, led by the group United Parents' Voice (UPV), was initially planned outside Chief Minister Rekha Gupta's Office at the Delhi Secretariat. However, it was relocated after the Delhi Police denied permission, citing security and traffic concerns. The protest follows the Delhi Cabinet's June 10 decision to approve an Ordinance based on the Delhi School Education (Transparency in Fixation and Regulation of Fees) Bill, 2025. The Bill had earlier received the Cabinet's approval on April 29, soon after parents staged widespread protests against fee hikes. The Bill, however, could not be presented in the Assembly because the Budget session was cut short. While the government officials have stated that the Bill and the Ordinance aim to curb arbitrary fee increases and improve transparency, parents alleged that the legislation was drafted without public consultation and fails to address ongoing issues affecting students and families. After being denied permission on Friday to hold the demonstration at outside the Secretariat by the Delhi Police, which imposed Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023 across the I.P. Estate area, the group moved the protest to Chhatrasal Stadium at 8 am Saturday, where the CM was attending the International Yoga Day celebrations. 'The government is scared of the parents' voice. The system has acknowledged our strength. Now let's show up in even bigger numbers,' said Mahesh Mishra, one of the protesters whose child studies at Delhi Public School, Dwarka. The group's key demands included an immediate pause in the implementation of the Ordinance, a 30-day public consultation period, an end to the alleged harassment of children by private schools, strict action against rule-violating institutions, rollback of unjustified hikes since 2019, and the establishment of a robust, transparent grievance redressal system for parents. 'We urge an immediate halt to the proposed Ordinance and the Bill. These should first be subjected to transparent public consultation as per constitutional and fundamental rights, as parents and citizens are the primary stakeholders in any education-related policy decision,' Mishra added. While carrying placards and raising slogans, the demonstrators demanded action against private schools for alleged coercive practices. UPV claimed that children had been removed from rolls by private schools, denied access to classes, and in some cases, physically blocked at school gates by bouncers over fee-related issues. The group described such incidents as mental harassment and demanded accountability from schools engaging in such practices. Another long-standing concern that echoed at the protest was the issue of unapproved fee hikes going back to 2019. The parents' group said that despite repeated appeals, the government has failed to roll back what they described as arbitrary and unjustified increases. They also highlighted the absence of a functional and time-bound grievance redressal mechanism. DPS Dwarka, Maharaja Agrasen Model School, Pitampura, and Apeejay School, Sheikh Sarai, are some of the schools that have been embroiled in disputes amid the fee hike row.
Hindustan Times
6 days ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Himachal BJP chief among 100 booked for violating prohibitory orders in Sirmaur
Nearly 100 protesters, including BJP state president Rajiv Bindal and Paonta Sahib MLA Sukhram Chaudhary, were booked on Sunday for assembling in front of Majra police station in Sirmaur district of Himachal Pradesh, defying prohibitory orders. Sirmaur additional superintendent of police Yogesh Rolta confirmed the filing of FIR against Bindal, Chaudhary and several others who were present in the crowd on June 14. When contacted, Rajiv Bindal said that he would comment after getting all details of the case. Police had issued prohibitory orders under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita in four villages — Kiratpur, Malion, Fatehpur and Missarwala — in Paonta Sahib area until June 19 after 10 people were injured in stone-pelting on Friday evening. The stone-pelting followed protests after a 19-year-old man from Kiratpur village eloped with an 18-year-old woman from different faith in a nearby village under Majra police station limits on June 4. The girl's family had lodged a complaint, but even after 10 days, no action was taken. Hindu organisations and local people have been protesting for the last few days, demanding strict action against the 'abductor'. On Friday, they blocked the Nahan-Paonta highway at Majra, about 25 km from Nahan, for about an hour. On Friday evening, as an angry crowd of protesters began moving towards the eloped man's house, locals from the other side resorted to stone-pelting, which the protesters retaliated. Subsequently, police resorted to lathicharge to bring the situation under control. Paonta Sahib DSP Manvendra Thakur said four persons were arrested for attacking cops in Kiratpur on Friday. A 36-hour dharna, set to be led by Bindal in Majra area, was postponed on Saturday after the eloped man and woman were traced.
NDTV
7 days ago
- Politics
- NDTV
"Was Of Paper": BJP After Minister Faces FIR For Throwing Slipper At Man
Kolkata: An FIR has been lodged against Union minister Sukanta Majumdar at a police station in Kolkata alleging he threw a slipper at a Sikh man which hit his turban, the ruling Trinamool Congress claimed on Sunday. BJP dismissed the allegation and said it was only a paper cutting used in a protest. . @BJP4India 's hatred knows no bounds, not even when it comes to mocking the sacred symbols of an entire community. First, LoP @SuvenduWB branded a turban-wearing police officer a 'Khalistani'. Now, their State President @DrSukantaBJP hurled a slipper at an on-duty officer's… — All India Trinamool Congress (@AITCofficial) June 12, 2025 The FIR, lodged at Kalighat police station in south Kolkata on June 13, claimed that on June 12, Majumdar, who is also the state BJP chief, had thrown a slipper in a public place at the crossing of Hazra Road and Harish Chatterjee Street, near Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's residence. The FIR, a copy of which was posted by the TMC on its X handle, stated that the complainant, a Sikh man, alleged that it was a deliberate and intentional act on the part of Majumdar, causing "insult to religious belief and hurt religious sentiment and also caused assault to that person". PTI has not independently verified the FIR copy posted on TMC's X handle post. The said FIR was lodged under Section 302 (protects individuals from actions intended to harm their religious sentiments) and 115(2) (voluntarily causing hurt) of BNS. The ruling TMC in West Bengal claimed that Sikh community has "responded with rightful anger" against Majumdar. "They have demanded an immediate and unconditional apology, and warned of widespread protests if their voice is ignored," the TMC said in its X handle post. Dismissing the allegation, BJP's Rajya Sabha MP Samik Bhattacharya said that it was only a paper cutting used in a protest. "The Sikh people are being insulted by planting a concocted story," he said. "The grooming that Majumdar and people like us have had, we have grown up learning about the sacrifices of Guru Teg Bahadur and Guru Gobind Singh," he said, denoting the respect of the BJP leaders for the Sikh community. Majumdar and other leaders were stopped by police en route to Maheshtala on June 12, following which they held a protest in Kolkata's Kalighat area near the residence of the chief minister, who is famously known to always wear slippers. In a post on X, Majumdar had said, "Just yesterday, the same @WBPolice were forced to wave white cloths in surrender before radical jihadists in Rabindranagar -- spineless, helpless, and humiliated. And today, suddenly, they appear to be warriors -- zealously following Chief Minister @MamataOfficial's orders with blind obedience, immersed in servitude!" "Today, as we moved toward Maheshtala to stand beside the attacked Hindus, the administration blocked our path citing Section 163. And when we later went to Kalighat, to the Chief Minister's residence, to question her silence and appeasement politics, her loyal @KolkataPolice pounced on us like personal slaves -- blindly defending their master. "In broad daylight, our leaders and @BJP4Bengal Karyakartas were shamelessly arrested -- a naked display of administrative tyranny," Majumdar added.
Hindustan Times
15-06-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Sirmaur: Day after violent clashes, cops say ‘kidnapped' girl recovered
Police have recovered the 18-year-old woman who was allegedly kidnapped by a 19-year-old man from a minority community in Himachal Pradesh's Sirmaur district earlier this week. Communal tensions gripped the Majra area after the incident leading to widespread unrest, prompting authorities to impose Section 163 of the Bhartiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) across Majra and nearby localities including Kiratpur, Meliyon, Fatehpur, and Mishrawala. According to police, a kidnapping case was registered on June 10 after the duo allegedly eloped. Since then, the girl's family and local residents had been demanding her safe return. The situation escalated on Friday evening when protests turned violent, resulting in clashes between two groups and incidents of stone-pelting. As tensions mounted, a group of protestors reportedly attempted to march toward the residence of the accused, prompting police to intervene. A mild lathicharge was carried out to disperse the crowd. Three police personnel were injured in the process, one of whom sustained a head injury. Paonta Sahib deputy superintendent of police Manvinder Thakur said, 'While trying to stop the crowd, three police personnel were injured, one of whom sustained a head injury. A case has been registered in connection with the violence. The girl has now been recovered.' State BJP chief Rajeev Bindal, who led a protest on Saturday, said, 'There is deep concern and anger among the local community over the alleged kidnapping. The administration has assured that the girl has been recovered. We demand that all relevant information be shared transparently with the victim's family and the public to help restore trust.' Bindal also called for an impartial inquiry into the reported police lathicharge during what he described as a peaceful demonstration. 'I have spoken to the SP and directions have been issued to initiate an investigation,' he said. 'Our protest was peaceful, aimed at securing justice for the victim's family and maintaining social harmony. The administration must act with transparency and present all facts before the public.'
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Business Standard
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Business Standard
Police prevents BJP leaders from visiting violence-hit Bengal's Maheshtala
West Bengal BJP leaders led by state unit president Sukanta Majumdar were prevented by the police from visiting violence-hit Maheshtala in South 24 Parganas district on Thursday, a day after the area witnessed group clashes. Union minister Majumdar and other leaders were stopped by police enroute to Maheshtala, following which they held a protest in Kolkata's Kalighat area near the residence of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee when they were detained and released later. In a post on X, Majumdar said, "Just yesterday, the same @WBPolice were forced to wave white cloths in surrender before radical jihadists in Rabindranagar -- spineless, helpless, and humiliated. And today, suddenly, they appear to be warriors -- zealously following Chief Minister @MamataOfficial's orders with blind obedience, immersed in servitude!" "Today, as we moved toward Maheshtala to stand beside the attacked Hindus, the administration blocked our path citing Section 163. And when we later went to Kalighat, to the Chief Minister's residence, to question her silence and appeasement politics, her loyal @KolkataPolice pounced on us like personal slaves -- blindly defending their master. In broad daylight, our leaders and @BJP4Bengal Karyakartas were shamelessly arrested -- a naked display of administrative tyranny," Majumdar said. He alleged that "radical fundamentalists run amok" in West Bengal and anyone who protests is crushed under the weight of the state machinery be it Malda, Murshidabad, or Maheshtala. The chief minister is solely focused on protecting her vote bank and the safety of Hindus does not exist on her agenda, he alleged. Leader of Opposition in the state assembly, Suvendu Adhikari, called on Governor C V Ananda Bose at Raj Bhavan to apprise him about the situation. In an X post, Adhikari said, "The police department's failure to contain the situation stems from their reluctance to use adequate force, fearing backlash since the jihadists would have been at the receiving end." "Instead, they stood by initially as miscreants mercilessly attacked Hindus, vandalised a Shiva temple, torched bikes and vehicles, and pelted stones right under the nose of Rabindra Nagar PS. Police Officers (including Lady Police Personnel) were injured, Police vehicles were damaged, and yet, the police have the audacity to downplay this as a petty squabble over illegal construction'. Shame on you. Why are you hiding the truth?" he added. Referring to the Murshidabad violence a few months ago, he said, "Similar communal unrest left lives shattered. The flames of targeted attacks on Hindus have now reached Kolkata. Arresting 40 people is not enough when hundreds were on rampage. Where is the accountability for your failure?" the senior BJP leader said. West Bengal Police said in an X post that 40 people have been arrested in the clash between two groups and urged leaders of different political parties to refrain from visiting the violence-hit areas. Adhikari told reporters earlier in the day that he has started the process of approaching the Calcutta High Court for the deployment of paramilitary forces in Maheshtala area. TMC leader and state minister Chandrima Bhattacharya told reporters that the arrest of an RSS activist in connection with the Maheshtala violence showed there might be a "sinister plan to foment clashes and mistrust between two groups in the area". (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
