Classes resumed in Murshidabad schools after summer vacation ended on Monday but some 27,000 students in at least six institutions at riot-hit Samserganj’s Dhulian could not return to their studies.
The schools continued to house central paramilitary forces which were deployed after communal clashes rocked the area in April leading to the deaths of three persons.
The riots were triggered after protests against the Narendra Modi government’s Waqf (Amendment) Act rocked Murshidabad’s Samserganj, Dhulian and Suti in the second week of April.
Thousands of students from Krishna Kumar Santosh Kumar Smriti Vidyapith, Dhulian High Madrasa, Dhulian Girls’ School, Dhulian Banichand Agarwala Balika Vidyalaya, Kanchantala JDJ Institution and Dighri High School had to return home on Monday without attending a single class.
Teachers too were left helpless, finding no classrooms or even any space to sit.
Classes in most of these schools had been suspended since April 13, following the outbreak of communal violence, well before the summer vacation began on April 30.
Now, even after the vacation has ended, regular classes remain suspended in these six schools, further hampering the academic progress of the students.
Teachers expressed concern that the prolonged disruption may severely impact students who rely heavily on classroom teaching, making it difficult to complete the syllabus.
Abdul Qadir, headmaster of Krishna Kumar Santosh Kumar Smriti Vidyapith, which has 3,200 students, said: “All the rooms are occupied by BSF personnel. Teachers came today, signed the attendance register, and returned home because they found no place to sit. Students came to school and returned home crying because it has been nearly three months without any classroom teaching.”
The situation is no better at Dhulian Girls’ School. Headmistress Jayashri Dutta said: “Out of 24 classrooms, 20 are still occupied by central forces. We don’t even have a washroom to use. We have nearly 4,500 students. I don’t know how to complete the syllabus.”
Nurul Islam, a teacher at Dhulian High Madrasa, said central force personnel allowed them to enter only after frisking, which he described as “humiliating”. “Students were compelled to go back today (Monday) as they found no vacant classroom to sit,”
he said.
Sources said that when protests over the new Waqf Act escalated into communal violence and the local police failed to control the situation, Calcutta High Court ordered central forces such as the BSF and the CRPF be deployed in the area.
To accommodate them, the district administration urgently arranged school campuses as classes were already suspended by then.
However, despite more than a month passing since normality was restored, the forces have not yet been withdrawn as a precautionary security measure.
With schools reopening, students now find themselves staring at uncertainty as there is no clear indication of when the personnel will vacate.
Last month, Calcutta High Court had stated that the security forces would stay put till further orders.
Aparna Mandal, district inspector of schools, said: “I am aware of the situation and will talk to the administration so that classes can resume.”
Ekam J. Singh, subdivisional officer (SDO) of Jangipur, said: “There was an extreme deterioration of law and order in Dhulian. Then, central forces were deployed on court orders and for our needs. Arrangements were made to immediately house those central forces in various educational institutions. So far, there was no problem because summer vacation was on. Problems started today (Monday) as schools reopened. We will talk to the central force commanders and somehow arrange to clear a part of school buildings for students to attend classes."
“In any case, arrangements must be made to start classes in the schools as soon as possible,” the SDO added.