Christians in Madhya Pradesh state in central India have slammed an order from the state’s child rights body asking children to seek written permission from parents to participate in school events.
Father Thankachan Jose, an academician based in Jabalpur diocese, said the order holds “an ulterior motive” of targeting Christian-run schools in the state that has seen a rise in hate crimes against the community in recent years.
“This is an indirect way of targeting Christmas functions in our schools where children dress as Santa clause, wear Christmas caps, and join other events linked to Christmas,” Jose told UCA News.
In a Dec. 12 order, the Madhya Pradesh State Commission for Protection of Child Rights directed schools across the state to obtain the parents’ prior written permission before involving students in various events or activities.
The order also states that schools should seek parents’ permission before children wear different dresses or are even shortlisted to play different characters.
“The administration is trying to harass us by issuing such an order close on the heels of Christmas,” Jose told UCA News on Dec. 18.
“We never see the child rights body issuing such an order ahead of any Hindu festival. If it was a serious concern, the priest added that the government should have issued a similar order as a common policy from the beginning of the academic session so that no one felt discriminated against”.
The priest said parents and students “never bother about such an order as they feel happy to be part of Christmas events.”
Jerry Paul, national president of the Sarva Isai Mahasabha (All Christian Federation), an ecumenical body, criticized the government for targeting school Christmas events.
“The government will not oppose if a student dresses up like Lord Krishna, a Hindu deity or any other Hindu God or Goddess, but when it comes to a Christian festival, it is indirectly opposing students from participating in it,” he told UCA News on Dec. 17.
“Why this discrimination in a democratic country like ours?” he asked, adding, “It is not going to help anyone; instead, it will create unnecessary trouble for Christian school management”.
The pro-Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in Madhya Pradesh issued a similar order in 2023, instructing all private schools to “seek prior permission of parents before involving students in Christmas-related events.”
The order had invited criticism from people from different walks of life for targeting the Christian festival.
This year, however, the order has not specified Christmas.
“The government has a different yardstick for majority and minorities, which is against the spirit of our constitution’, Paul added.
“Rightwing Hindu groups target us, and our institutions and the law enforcing agencies most often remain mute spectators until the damage is done,” he lamented.
The Federal and state child rights protection bodies registered several cases against Christian schools, hostels, and orphanage officials. Cases were filed against a retired bishop and some priests and nuns, accusing them of engaging in religious conversion, among other charges.
Christians make up a mere 0.29 percent of 72 million people in the Hindu majority state.
source : ucanews