8 students suspended in a missionary school in Rajasthan for chanting Bharat Mata Ki Jai

Case ID : 529b2e3 | Location : Baran, Rajasthan, India | Date of Incident : Tue, 5 December, 2023

Case ID : 529b2e3

Baran, Rajasthan, India

5 December, 2023

8 students suspended in a missionary school in Rajasthan for chanting Bharat Mata Ki Jai

Attack not resulting in death

Attacked for Hindu identity

Case Summary

Emmanuel School, located in Anta, Baran district of Rajasthan, suspended 8 students for chanting 'Bharat Mata ki Jai.' The rationale provided by the school administration behind the suspension was that the students violated the rules of the school. In protest against this, family members reached the school and demonstrated against the decision. However, the school refused to revoke the suspension. The eight students wrote a letter to the district education officer over the issue, saying that they were suspended for chanting the Bharat Mata Ki Jai slogan. They also said that they were threatened for the slogan, and then were suspended for seven days. They requested to take action against the school and provide relief to them. The incident of sloganeering by the students took place on December 6, 2023, when a procession was taken out in Anta Town in protest against the murder of Sukhdev Singh Gogamedi. The march was organised by the members of Rajput community and Rashtriya Rajput Karni Sena. When the procession reached near the school, the 8 students came out and started chanting Bharat Mata Ki Jai along with the participants of the procession. The school management could not accept this action by the students and berated them saying it violated school rules. After that, letters suspending them for 7 were sent to their parents on December 7. These students included Sharad Soni, Karthik Meena, Saurabh Malav, Takshit Malav, Prem Gurjar, Yatharth Kumawat, Jatin and Harshit Nagar. All of them studied in class 9.

Why it is Hate Crime ?

This case has been added to the hate tracker under the prime category- Attack not resulting in death. Further, as per case details, the sub-category chosen under the abovementioned category is- Attacked for Hindu identity- In several cases, Hindus are attacked merely for their Hindu identity without any perceived provocation. A classic example of this category of religiously motivated hate crime is a murder in 2016. 7 ISIS terrorists were convicted for shooting a school principal in Kanpur because they got ‘triggered’ seeing the Kalava on his wrist and tilak that he had put. In this, the Hindu victim had offered no provocation except for his Hindu religious identity. The motivation for the murder was purely religious, driven by religious supremacy. Such cases where Hindus are targeted merely for their religious identity would be documented as a hate crime under this category. Here, the suspension of students in a Christian missionary school for chanting "Bharat Mata Ki Jai" can be perceived as an attack on the religious identity of Hindu students because the slogan "Bharat Mata Ki Jai" holds significant cultural and religious meaning within Hinduism. For many Hindus, "Bharat Mata" represents the country as a divine mother figure, embodying the land's sacredness and the spiritual connection between the nation and its people. Chanting "Bharat Mata Ki Jai" is, therefore, not just an expression of patriotism but also an act of religious reverence. When a school administration suspends students for chanting this slogan, it can be seen as suppressing their right to express their religious and cultural identity. This act may be interpreted as an intolerance toward a practice that is deeply intertwined with Hindu beliefs, thus marginalizing the students' religious expression. The suspension goes beyond a disciplinary action; it becomes an act of religious discrimination that targets and undermines the students' Hindu identity, which is why this case has been added to the hate tracker.