Jawaharlal Nehru University professor emerita Zoya Hasan’s scheduled address at Sardar Patel Vidyalaya’s Independence Day function was cancelled hours before the event after two school security personnel reportedly told her that there was a “threat” to her and the students.
Hasan told TOI that she had been invited by the school principal a month earlier and was due to hoist the national flag and address students and parents at 10am on the topic “Why pluralism matters”.
Parents cite protests outside school
Parents associated with the school said a group of protesters, whom they identified as members of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), had gathered outside the school gate opposing the event. The VHP denied that its members were involved in the protest but said it welcomed the cancellation.
Hasan said the school had arranged transportation for her and that the history teacher was expected to accompany her. However, shortly before she was due to leave for the school at around 9.30am, two men arrived at her residence.
According to Hasan, one of them identified himself as the school’s head of security and told her that a threat had been reported against her and a larger group of students, leading to the cancellation of her address.
Police deny role in cancellation
A parent said the administration had told them that police pressure led to the cancellation because of a threat from protesters. The parent questioned why the protesters were not removed from outside the school instead.
Delhi Police, however, said they had not prevented anyone from speaking and had no role in the decision. Police said they had received information about the incident and had gone to the school only to check on the matter.
Parents described the cancellation as unprecedented. The Independence Day function proceeded with the president of the Gujarat Education Society, which manages the school, taking Hasan’s place and distributing the awards, they said.
Reactions to Hasan’s cancelled address
Economist Jayati Ghosh criticised the cancellation in a post on X, questioning whether the government was afraid of Hasan speaking on pluralism. The Safdar Hashmi Memorial Trust, an artists’ collective and cultural organisation, also condemned the decision.
VHP spokesperson Vinod Bansal, meanwhile, said it was inappropriate for a school named after Sardar Patel to invite Hasan as chief guest, alleging that she had insulted the former leader. He welcomed the school’s decision to bar her from the programme and accused her of being associated with what he described as the “‘tukde-tukde gang’”.
There was no response from school principal Anuradha Joshi.
Following the cancellation, a group of students and parents organised a virtual address by Hasan from 11am to 12.30pm on Saturday.
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