VHP complains about school poem, headmaster suspended

The headmaster of a government-run school in Pilibhit, Uttar Pradesh, was suspended after the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) complained that he was making the students recite Urdu prayers.

Furkan Ali, the headmaster of Bisalpur Primary School, has contested his suspension, saying that students also recite "saraswati vandana" and "shakti humein dena data" (Hindu prayer songs).

District Magistrate Vaibhav Srivastava said the local VHP unit alleged that Mr Ali was forcing children, mostly belonging to the majority community, to recite the prayer which is recited at madrassas.