‘Kids Can’t Do a Play Under BJP’: Parents Slam Bidar Sedition Row

(Video Editor: Sandeep Suman)

Amid cries of ‘Bidar Police down, down’, several angry parents, activists and citizens of Bengaluru came together to raise their voices against the ‘inhuman’ behaviour of the Bidar police. Over the last week, cops have turned up at a local primary school almost everyday, to interrogate minors for hours on end, over charges of staging a ‘seditious’ play at a school function.

Two women, the headmistress and a single mother have been in jail since 30 January after their arrest. Bearing placards, chanting slogans and holding a large banner that said, ‘Humanity is the only religion,’ citizens called out the inaction of the state government as well as the insensitivity of local cops on their stringent action.

Demanding immediate withdrawal of the case, several citizens said that they feared for their own kids, claiming that ‘there is no freedom for the kids to stage a play under this government.’

‘Kids Should be Asking Questions, Not Answering Cops’

Organised by the Parents of Peace, Justice & Plurality and a few other citizens’ collectives, as the evening turned dark, protesters lit up candles, shouting messages of solidarity with the parents, teachers and staff members at the Bidar school.

Dwiji Guru, a parent part of Parents of Peace, Justice & Plurality said: “As parents of children, we feel kids should be asking questions, not answering the police. This is really sad the police has come to this.”

Samar Hafeez, freelance writer, said, “In the national capital, there are goons, terrorists yielding guns against students, nothing is being done there. But in a small school in Bidar, students were just in a play. This is just ridiculous! The law and order in this country is terrible.”

Kalpana Chakravarty, social worker, said that she was angry at the way the children were being treated.

“There is also the double speak of the BJP government as they want to counsel the children in Shaheen Bagh, but what are you doing here? You’re traumatising the children.”

Kalpana Chakravarty

‘Terrorists are Roaming Free; Here Children Are Being Questioned’

Calling the law and order situation in the country terrible, freelance writer Samar Hafeez questioned what the home minister was doing.

“In the national capital, there are goons, terrorists yielding guns against students, nothing is being done there. But in a small school in Bidar students were just in a play. What is the home minister doing? We don’t want a government like this,” she fumed.

Mohammed Nayeem, father and social activist said that it is humiliating that children could not even perform a play under the BJP government.

“What justice is this? Can children not do a simple play? Putting your opinion forward, cannot be sedition. What kind of democracy is this? What kind of dictatorship,” he asked.

There has been national outrage over the repeated questioning of minor children over the staging of an anti-CAA play. Citizens are now demanding strict action from the state government and an apology to the school and affected families.

“We want the state government, especially the CM’s office to step in and withdraw the case, instruct the Bidar police to get something in their brain. A child has been separated from her mother, the only person to care for her on such a flimsy charge.”

Dwiji Guru

Talath Yasmin, a mother said, “This is not just about the children, this could happen anywhere. It could happen to our kids as well.”