All Schools in Kashmir Follow Hurriyat’s Bandh Calendar Except One

Students of one of Srinagar’s biggest private schools sat for exams at an indoor stadium in a high-security zone

Syed Ali Shah Geelani (centre) at a protest in Srinagar. (Photo: Reuters)

For 111 consecutive days, Kashmir Valley has been shut down in protests since the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen poster boy Burhan Wani on 8 July.

In the midst of the agitation that has crippled the Valley and the normal life of its people, 573 students of one of Srinagar’s biggest private schools, Delhi Public School, sat for their internal examinations at an indoor stadium in a high-security zone, reported The Indian Express.

While schools across the Valley have been forced shut by the Hurriyat protest calendar, among the students at the indoor stadium was the granddaughter of Hurriyat chairman Syed Ali Shah Geelani who has spearheaded the protests for over a 100 days.

A Kashmiri protester throws a stone towards police during a strike. (Photo: Reuters)

Geelani’s granddaughter and her family live separately in Srinagar. Her father, Geelani’s eldest son Nayeem, is not a member of the Hurriyat Conference.

When contacted by The Indian Express, Nayeem confirmed that his daughter had appeared for the exams.

Once the school decided to hold the internal exams, it was mandatory for my daughter, like other students, to appear as they carried a weightage of 70 percent marks. If my daughter had skipped the exams, she wouldn’t have been able to sit for the final exams scheduled for next March.

He added that they were never “against students appearing in exams or attending schools”.

People try to salvage the burning Hanfia Institute at Lal Chowk, Anantnag. (Photo: Jehnagir Ali)

The state government, in an effort to bring students back to school, announced that the final exams for all classes would not be postponed, even as parents and students protested, given the situation in the Valley.

Several government school buildings in Kashmir have been set on fire by unidentified miscreants, in the past few weeks. The Hurriyat had condemned the incidents.

Also Read: Ashes to Dust: Kashmir’s Schools Are Burning, but No One Knows Why

The separatist leader however has stayed stoic on the decision to not let schools reopen.

No sane person can oppose or deny the importance of education.... but education can only thrive in a calm, peaceful and dignified atmosphere... (By opening schools), these innocent kids will be far from getting their education as they are mentally and psychologically disturbed and terrified.

Syed Ali Geelani

DPS however is not the only educational institution to conduct examinations. The Central University as well as the Islamic University of Science and Technology held examinations as well.

Source: The Indian Express