Two government school teachers who were suspended for participating in foot marches organised by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, the ideological mentor of the BJP, have finally got some relief.The Karnataka Administrative Tribunal in Kalaburagi has stayed the suspension orders issued against them.
The teachers, Gururaj Joshi and Anna Saheb Deshmukh, are from schools in Hunasagi taluk of Yadgir district.
Following their participation in the march, the School Education Department had suspended them, contending that government employees cannot be members of political parties or organisations involved in politics, associate themselves with such organisations or participate in agitations.
Read: Karnataka Suspends 2 Government School Teachers For Participating In RSS March
The orders were issued on August 20 by Yadgir Deputy Director of School Education Channabasappa Mudhol. It said the teachers' participation in the RSS Patha Sanchalana (route marches) amounted to dereliction of duty and violated rules of the Karnataka Civil Services (Conduct) Rules, 2021.
"Your participation in the RSS Patha Sanchalana prima facie amounts to dereliction of duty and violation of Rules 3(1), 3(2), 3(3), 5(1) and 7 of the KCS Rules," the order read.
Joshi was reported to have participated in an RSS Patha Sanchalana held at Talikoti in Vijayapura district on October 12, 2025. His photograph had appeared in 'Vijaya Karnataka'.
In Deshmukh's case, he was accused of participating in an RSS Patha Sanchalana held at Hunasagi on October 10, 2025.
Both teachers said the RSS programme they participated in was not held during working hours and was a cultural rather than political programme.
Challenging the suspension, the teachers approached the Karnataka State Administrative Tribunal, which after hearing their appeal, granted a freeze on the suspension orders.
The move has brought relief to the two teachers, who can now contest the matter further before the tribunal.
