"Atmosphere Of Fear": Chandra Shekhar Aazad To NDTV On Kanwar Yatra "Violence"

Azad Samaj Party (Kanshiram) president Chandra Shekhar Aazad has defended the schoolteacher in Uttar Pradesh's Bareilly who is facing a police case for a song that purportedly referred to the Kanwar Yatra, an annual procession undertaken by devotees of Lord Shiva.

Rajneesh Gangwar, a teacher at MGM Inter College, was seen in the viral video singing the song to students who had gathered in the school premises.

"Kanwar leke mat jana, tum gyan ka deep jalana, manavta ke seva karke tum sachche manav ban jaana," he said in Hindi, which roughly translates to: "Don't bring Kanwars, go light the lamp of knowledge. Become a true human by serving humanity."

A case was filed against him on Monday after a local corporator and some BJP leaders approached the police and demanded action.

Speaking to NDTV, Mr Aazad, a member of the Lok Sabha from Uttar Pradesh's Nagina, said the teacher just talked about "serving humanity".

"We believe in the Constitution of India. In Article 51A, which is a fundamental duty, it is stated that every citizen must develop scientific thinking and get rid of superstition and hypocrisy. I heard the teacher. He had appealed to children to become humanists. But the government has filed a case against him for talking about humanity," Mr Aazad, who is also a lawyer, said.

He said the teacher had said that you can't become a doctor, engineer or lawyer by participating in the Kanwar Yatra.

"What did he say wrong?" Mr Aazad said.

Mr Gangwar expressed regret if his words inadvertently hurt anyone's sentiments.

In a clarification video and a letter sent to the school principal, he said that he "noticed a continuous decline in student attendance at MGM Inter College."

"Upon questioning, he learned that many young students were absent due to their participation in the Kanwar Yatra," he wrote.

He said it was in this context that he recited the poem to students during the morning assembly on July 12.

His primary objective, he clarified, was "to make young students aware of the dangers of going into crowded areas on roads, staying away from intoxication, and maintaining regular attendance in class."

Chandra Shekhar Aazad On Kanwar Yatra "Violence"

Chandra Shekhar Aazad also questioned why there was no action against some people who were resorting to "violence" during the Kanwar Yatra, referring to recent incidents of Kanwariyas allegedly damaging cars after they brushed past them.

Some of them have "created an atmosphere of terror" among women and children, he said.

"People's businesses have been ruined. Their shops have been shut down. One religion in particular is also being targeted," he said, and asked if this is a "secular nation".

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"They have sticks in their hands and are breaking people's glasses and bones. There is an atmosphere of fear in families. I have talked to many people who are not ready to go from one district to another because they feel that if by mistake something happens, then they will be treated like animals or can be lynched," Mr Aazad said.