Bengaluru: The Congress-led Karnataka government on Thursday reissued an old circular from the office of the Commissioner of the Karnataka Public Instruction Department, prohibiting the use of government school grounds for private purposes.
The circular, originally dated February 7, 2013, clearly states that government school grounds and premises should be used exclusively for academic activities and not for any private or unrelated purposes.
With this move, the Siddaramaiah government appears to be preparing to ban Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) activities on the premises of government and aided schools in the state. The step follows a letter from Minister for RDPR, IT and BT Priyank Kharge, requesting enforcement of such a ban.
Sources in the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) confirmed that the reissue of the circular was in response to Kharge’s letter demanding a ban on RSS activities in public spaces, including schools and colleges.
The circular, signed by then Commissioner S.R. Umashankar, referred to a previous request to use government school grounds in Chamarajpet, Bengaluru, and stated that school premises should only be used for schoolchildren’s daily activities such as sports, physical education, and academics.
It directs that school premises and grounds should not be used for activities unrelated to education and that requests for such purposes should not be forwarded to the Commissioner’s office.
According to sources, the state government plans to use this circular to enforce a ban on all RSS activities within school premises and grounds. They also confirmed that the matter will be discussed in the cabinet meeting on Thursday, October 16.
Speaking on the development, Home Minister G. Parameshwara said in Bengaluru, “At present, the issue of banning RSS activities is not on the cabinet meeting’s agenda. If it comes up as an additional agenda item, we will discuss it and make a decision. Usually, there are additional agendas.”
He added, “There is already a provision against allowing private or religious activities in government spaces. This is not new. However, it has not been strictly implemented. Sometimes, when one or more organisations sought permission for public grounds, a decision was taken to either allow one of them or deny permission to all. We will see what decision is taken in the cabinet meeting when the matter comes up for discussion.”
The circular follows instructions from Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who had asked Chief Secretary Shalini Rajneesh to examine the demand for banning RSS activities in public places, especially in government and aided school premises. The CM also directed her to review measures adopted in Tamil Nadu on similar issues.
With IANS inputs