School run by Christian missionaries expels 6 students for chanting "Jai Shri Ram"
Mumbai, Maharashtra, India 
11 June, 2023
Case Summary
A controversy erupted in the St. Lawrence School in Vashi, Mumbai, after the principal suspended six Class 10 students for chanting "Jai Shri Ram" near the school's washroom area. MNS members met with the school principal, Saira Kennedy, demanding the immediate reinstatement of the students and a written apology. The incident reportedly occurred on June 12, 2023, when 10-12 Class 10 students chanted the slogan near the washroom. A teacher notified the principal, leading to the expulsion of approximately six students. After the word spread and protests erupted, the principal denied the expulsion claims, stating that the students were only warned for creating a disturbance and breaking school discipline. Parents were summoned to address the issue, and the school apologised if its actions offended anyone, ensuring the students would not face academic repercussions.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
Due to the case specifics, it has been placed under the sub-category- Restriction on expression of Hindu identity, under the prime category- Restriction/ban on Hindu practices of the hate tracker. Restriction on expression of Hindu identity: An example of the state-affected prejudicial and targeted orders against the Hindu community would be a government denying the right of a Hindu or a group of Hindus to hold a religious procession owing to the animosity of non-Hindu groups. Denial of the religious right of the Hindus to assuage the non-Hindu group which harbours animosity to a point where it could lead to violence against Hindus is not only a failure of law and order but is a prejudicial order against Hindus, denying them their fundamental rights to express their religious identity. An example of a hate crime against Hindus by a non-Hindu would be a non-Hindu institution forcing its Hindu employees to abandon religious symbols that a Hindu would wear as an expression of faith owing to inherent prejudice against the faith professed by the victim or a non-Hindu group of people restricting a Hindu group from constructing a place of worship simply because the demography of the area in which the temple is being built is dominated by non-Hindus. Such actions are driven by religious animosity and/or prejudice against Hindus and their faith and would therefore be categorized as a hate crime. Another primary category this case is being added to is 'Predatory Proselytisation'. The sub-category it is being added to is 'Proselytisation by grooming, brainwashing, manipulation or subtle indoctrination'. Religious brainwashing essentially means the often subtle and forcible indoctrination to induce someone to give up their religious beliefs to accept contrasting regimented ideas. Religious grooming or brainwashing also involves propaganda and manipulation. It involves the systematic effort, driven by religious malice and indoctrination, to persuade “non-believers’ to accept allegiance, command, or doctrine to and of a contrasting faith. Cases of such grooming or brainwashing are far more nuanced than direct threats, coercion, inducement and violence. In such cases, it is often seen that there is repeated, subtle and continual manipulation of the victim to induce disaffection towards their own faith and acceptance of the contrasting faith of the perpetrator. While subtle indoctrination is widely acknowledged as predatory, an element which is often understated in such conversions or the attempts of such conversion is the role of loyalty and trust which might develop between the perpetrator and the victim. Fiduciary relationships are often abused to affect such religious conversion. For example, an educator transmitting religious doctrine of a competing faith to a Hindu student. The Hindu student is likely to accept what the teacher is transmitting owing to existence of the fiduciary relationship. The exploitation of the fiduciary relationship to religiously indoctrinate victims would also be included in this category. Since the underlying animosity towards the victim’s faith forms the basis of predatory proselytization, such cases are considered religiously motivated hate crimes. The case reveals that the Hindu victims were minors, indicating a lack of consent and genuine change of conscience. It is a well-established fact that children are more susceptible to manipulation since they are still developing emotionally, cognitively, and socially. Their brains are not fully matured, making them more vulnerable to influence and less capable of critically evaluating information. Moreover, subtle manipulation tactics can be difficult to detect, especially when employed by trusted authority figures in positions of influence. This makes it challenging for parents, to identify and address instances of religious manipulation in schools. In this case, the accused, teachers in a position of trust, demonstrated a clear animosity towards Hinduism by expelling students who chanted Jai Shree Ram, manifesting their faith. Chanting of religious slogans is an intrinsic part of the manifestation of one's faith. The teachers covertly tried to push the children towards Christianity by distancing them from their religion and practices. This sort of harassment is rooted in animosity towards the victim’s religious identity and is therefore documented as a religiously motivated hate crime in this Hinduphobia Tracker.
Victim Details
Total Victim
6
Deceased
0
Gender
- Male 0
- Female 0
- Third Gender 0
- Unknown 6
Caste
- SC/ST 0
- OBC 0
- General 0
- Unknown 6
Age Group
- Minor 6
- Adult 0
- Senior Citizen 0
- Unknown 0
Case Status
Complaint not filed
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Christian Extremists
Perpetrators Range
One Person
Perpetrators Gender
female
Sources 
