After a preliminary investigation into a complaint filed by private school manager Sabina Jahid in Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh, alleging that her Muslim neighbours oppose the national anthem in her school, the police have found that the matter relates to an old dispute, and the allegation regarding the national anthem was not true.
As per reports, Sabina Jahid had submitted a complaint to the District Magistrate and the SSP on Tuesday (29th April). In the complaint, Jahid, who runs a private school named Blooming Dales located in a Muslim dominated area, alleged that for the past week, local Muslims have been protesting outside her school, pressuring her to stop the singing of the national anthem. She submitted CCTV footage as proof. Jahid further alleged that they threatened her that if she wanted to run the school, she should hold Islamic prayers in the school instead of the national anthem.
Moreover, Jahid alleged that her Muslim neighbours started troubling her even more after the Pahalgam terror attack. She added that the local Muslims said that the school was located in a Muslim-dominated area, and the majority of students in the school were Muslims and therefore, the national anthem should not be sung in the school.
They allegedly asked her to make the students sing “Lab pe ati hai dua banke tamanna meri”, a song written by poet Allama Iqbal in place of the national anthem. Jahid’s school, which is up to the 5th standard, reportedly received affiliation in 2016. At present, around 400 students, including Hindus, Muslims and Christians, are enrolled in the school.
Police found no issue related to the national anthem
After receiving Jahid’s complaint, the police started investigating the matter. Interestingly, the police found that the matter was not related to the singing of the national anthem. SHO, Qila Police Station, Rajesh Kumar, said that the school is located in a narrow street, which causes inconvenience to locals.
Probe found that there are frequent disputes over drainage and water in the area, and both parties keep complaining against each other.
यूपी : बरेली में स्कूल संचालिका सबीना जाहिद ने आरोप लगाया कि पड़ोसी मुस्तफा मियां और शकूर स्कूल में राष्ट्रगान नहीं गाने देते। पुलिस जांच में पता चला कि सबीना स्कूल के पास वाली जमीन खरीदना चाहती थी, जिसके मालिक शकूर ने जमीन बेचने से मना कर दिया था।
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The police said that Sabina wanted to buy a piece of land adjacent to her school. However, the owner of the land, Mustafa Mia, was not willing to sell it to her. This led to a dispute between Sabina Jahid and Mustafa, and she filed a complaint against Mustafa Mia and another person, Shakur. To sensationalise the case, she added the allegation regarding the national anthem, the police said.
The investigation also revealed that some people provoked the school owner and presented this incident by linking it to the national anthem. Information about these people is being sought.