Kochi: The Kerala High Court has questioned the state government over the suspension of a teacher for a question regarding Veer Savarkar. Justice Viju Abraham directed the state government to provide an explanation on the matter, and the case will be considered again on the 17th of this month. The court issued this directive while hearing a petition filed by teacher K. Guru Prasad Rai challenging his suspension.
“Why is a suspension necessary over an issue like this? Even if needed, departmental disciplinary action is always an option,” Justice Viju Abraham asked, instructing the government to state a clear reason.
The petition states that the suspension violated all rules and was carried out based on the verbal directives of the Minister for General Education. It argues that there was no error in either the question or the answer prepared for the quiz competition, and that the suspension was enacted simply because a section of society disliked them. Furthermore, the petition points out that neither of the two letters issued to the teacher indicated that the answer was incorrect. Highlighting historical context, the petition notes that in May 1970, the central government under Indira Gandhi even released a commemorative stamp honoring Savarkar, and claimed that the suspension is entirely politically motivated and deserves to be quashed.
Guru Prasad filed the petition through advocates V. Sagit Kumar and K.S. Bharathan.
