Dukhtaran-e-Milat activists protest in Srinagar. (File picture)

Srinagar, May 7: The debate over sex education has reached Jammu and Kashmir a tad late, but the Valley has given it a new twist.

A decision to introduce sex education in schools across the state has not only raised questions of “morality” but is also being seen as a “well-crafted design to weaken the separatist struggle”.

Asiya Andrabi, who heads the hardline Dukhtaran-e-Milat, today led the charge against “imposing sex education” on schools in Kashmir.

“The purpose behind such a move is to convert Jammu and Kashmir into a free-sex zone. The Government of India wants to encourage obscenity and vulgarity here so that the new generation is destroyed morally,” she said.

Andrabi alleged that this was a ploy to turn the focus of youths away from the separatist struggle. “The Indian media and the polluted educational set-up are already advancing towards that goal. Now there are concerted efforts to include this vulgarity in the school syllabus, which will be taught from June 1,” the Dukhtaran chief said.

She threatened an agitation against the move and urged college and university authorities to resist it. “In the meantime, I will get in touch with the conscious citizens of this place and formulate a strategy to counter the move. I will warn the government to stay away from such anti-Islamic measures,” she said.

Andrabi’s threat came after a section of the local media published details of the proposed syllabus, triggering a debate.

Not just separatists, mainstream politicians, too, are opposed to sex education.

State education minister Peerzada Mohammad Sayeed said there is “no question of imparting sex education in state-run schools”. The minister added: “There are some schools where the CBSE syllabus is taught and we have no control over them. But we will take some decision in this regard.”