Dear Moral Police in Schools, Stop Ruining Young Lives for Hugging

The school accessed photos from the suspended students’ private Instagram accounts to gather ‘evidence’ of intimacy.

A Class 12 boy and a Class 11 girl have been suspended from the school for hugging each other. Image used for representational purposes.

(Photo: The Quint)

A 16-year-old boy and a 16-year-old girl have been suspended from a school in Thiruvananthapuram for hugging each other. If that doesn’t shock you, here’s a gist of what the Kerala High Court said about the case – the Principal is the thekedaar of morality within the school. So, suspension is okay. No problem.

*slow clap*

Waah, High Court, waah.

There are so many things wrong with this case that we don’t even know which one is the worst. So here are the options – why don’t you choose?

School students suspended in Kerala for hugging each other. Which aspect of this case do you hate the most?(Photo: Meghnad Bose/The Quint)

In case you’re confused, let us break it down for you.

Option A: Congratulate, Magar Door Se

She performed a western music number on stage. He went and congratulated her for the performance.

Result? They were suspended.

Arrey principal ji, why behave like you’re from the stone age? Ho toh 2017 mein na.

Option B: Instagram Ke Jasoos

When your school doesn’t understand what the word “private” means.(GIF Courtesy: GIPHY)

The school authorities accessed pictures from the private Instagram accounts of the students and then paraded the printouts as “evidence” of their intimacy.

Saboot!

The Supreme Court says privacy is a fundamental right but obviously, the Principal is a law unto himself, right? He don’t care about no right to privacy.

Option C: Bull-Shaming and Other Bullshit

This is what happened when the boy’s father was summoned to school on 24 July by Rajan Verghese, the secretary of the Mar Thoma Educational Society which runs the school.

We were taken to the secretary’s room and I was shocked at the way he behaved with my son. He abused him and even called my son a <i>vithukala</i> (bull in heat). He said it would be better to not have a boy like this than bring him up this way. He also said my son should be punished like a godman who had been castrated in Thiruvananthapuram (for alleged rape).

The boy’s father to <b>The Quint</b>

So this is what the secretary of the school effectively told the boy’s father – “Your son is like a horny bull. He should be castrated.”

Reminder: The school thinks the boy should be CASTRATED because he hugged a girl!

Option D: Exam Toh Dene De, Bhai!

Okay, so the guy is in class 12, which means his board exams are coming up in a few months. But hang on, he’s not been allowed to attend classes for 5 months. Not allowed to appear for his pre-board exams either. So is he supposed to take his boards without attending class?

Oh, and here’s the best part. Now, the school is not sure if he can even sit for the board exams. Because the CBSE has a minimum attendance criterion.

This school is literally ruining the boy’s future because of a hug!

“How is this even happening? And the court is okay with it?!”(GIF Courtesy: GIPHY)

Option E: Moral Policing Mein Bhi Zero Integrity

The school authorities wanted the girl to write a letter saying that the boy was responsible and that she too blames him.

Matlab consent tha, school ko pasand nahi aaya, toh kaha ki “beti, aise bolo ki consent nahi tha.” Tab lagega na molestation jaisa.

Those were our options for the worst thing about this hugstorm. Which one would you pick? Let us know in the comments below.

Moral Policing in Schools the Norm Across India

Is this what we want our schools to become?(Photo: Rahul Gupta/The Quint)

John Lennon had said a long time ago, “We live in a world where we have to hide to make love, while violence is practiced in broad daylight.”

Or as a wise man wrote on Facebook, “India mein public mein hug-ne pe penalty nahi lagta hai, par hug karne ke liye zaroor lag sakta hai!”

And it’s not just this one school in Kerala – across the country, people are speaking up, recounting the moral policing they faced in school.

(Photo: Screenshot/Facebook)

(Photo: Screenshot/Facebook)

(Photo: Screenshot/Facebook)

If you’ve got a story to share, write it down in the comments below or mail me at [e-mail].

Let’s fight to #SaveTheHug. Let’s fight to #StopMoralPolicing.