Mangaluru school faces heat for cutting and throwing rakhis from students' wrists

The school did not have any problem with friendship bands, relative of one student said

Parents, Hindu organisations and BJP workers staged a protest on Friday against Infant Mary English Medium School in Katipalla, after teachers removed rakhis tied around the wrist of children and threw them in the dustbin.

Harinakshi, whose nephew goes to the school, said parents and children were pained after teachers had forcefully cut rakhis using scissors on Thursday. Raksha Bandhan symbolises the relationship between brother and sister and has its own significance for Hindus, she said.

“The children after celebrating Raksha Bandhan at home had gone to the school with rakhi tied on their wrists. After teachers had removed the rakhis, the school through the public address system directed children to remove rakhi from their wrists as it was not allowed on school premises. The school did not have any problem when children had tied friendship day bands recently. We urge authorities to ensure that such incidents do not recur in school again,” Harinakshi urged.

Following the tense situation, police intervened and dispersed the crowd. School Correspondent Fr Santhosh Lobo said, “The issue has been solved amicably. We had convened a meeting of parents and teachers in the school. Those who had committed the mistake have regretted and apologised.”