Bhopal: A directive by the Mohan Yadav government to the schools and colleges in Madhya Pradesh to celebrate ‘Janmashtami’ or the birth of Lord Krishna, falling on August 26 this year, has stirred a political row with the Opposition Congress seeing it as an attempt to indoctrinate students with the Hindutva ideology.The Madhya Pradesh government in its order dated August 21 asked the local district administrations to ensure that Janmashtami is celebrated enthusiastically in the schools and colleges in the state in their areas.Congress on Friday slammed the order, saying that educational institutions are not the place where religious festivals are celebrated.“Schools, colleges and other educational institutions should be free from religious and political influence. Educational institutions are for education and they should be allowed to function as such. There are holidays in schools and colleges for religious festivals and people celebrate them according to their faiths”, senior Congress leader and MLA Arif Masood said.Chief minister Mohan Yadav however defended the decision, saying that the state is blessed by Lord Krishna for being associated with his life.He said that the popular tourist sites in Madhya Pradesh such as Narayan, Amjhera, and Janapav Dham are associated with Lord Krishna and announced his government’s plan to develop them as pilgrim Centres.There is a belief that Lord Krishna had his education in the ashram of Sandeepani in Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh.Sandeepani Ashram is a popular tourist site in Madhya Pradesh.“Lord Krishna had highlighted the importance of education 5,000 years ago. He came to Ujjain from Mathura to study. What could be a more auspicious time to celebrate his teachings?” he asked.He took a dig at Congress for criticising the decision to celebrate Janmashtami in schools and colleges, wondering if Congress people would stop visiting Mathura for being the birthplace of Lord Krishna.“This is absolutely disrespectful and nonsense”, he said while reacting to the Congress leader’s comments.State BJP secretary Rajneesh Agrawal said that Lord Krishna is the cultural legacy of the country symbolising values and ethos of the Indian society.“Celebration of Janmashtami means celebration of our rich culture”, he said.Mr Masood has lambasted the state government for making the celebration of Janmashtami in schools and colleges ‘mandatory’ and wondered why then the state government is raising questions about madrasas.“I wonder why the state government is ruining the education”, he quipped.
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