UP teacher defends Shabana Azmi in Facebook post, suspended for her language - Hindustan Times
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UP teacher defends Shabana Azmi in Facebook post, suspended for her language

Hindustan Times, Noida | ByPreety Acharya
Jan 29, 2020 06:07 PM IST

The teacher, who lives with her two children and husband in Gautam Budh Nagar, has been moved to the Chayansa development area.

A teacher at a government school in Dadri near Delhi has been suspended for her Facebook post against people who were making insensitive remarks against Shabana Azmi after the actor met with a car accident.

The teacher had commented against the people who targeted Shabana Azmi and were wishing for her death when the actor met with a car accident on Mumbai-Pune Expressway on January 18.(HT FILE Photo)
The teacher had commented against the people who targeted Shabana Azmi and were wishing for her death when the actor met with a car accident on Mumbai-Pune Expressway on January 18.(HT FILE Photo)

The suspended teacher has been identified as Mridula Shukla.

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According to education officials, Shukla had commented against the people who targeted Azmi and were wishing for her death when the actor met with a car accident on Mumbai-Pune Expressway on January 18.

“There were people on her Facebook page who were commenting against Shabana Azmi and Shukla responded with controversial language which is not allowed by a government employee,” said Bal Mukund Prasad, basic education officer, Gautam Budh Nagar.

The teacher, who lives with her two children and husband in Gautam Budh Nagar, has been moved to the Chayansa development area.

The authorities said her comments were in violation of the service rules.

“We got an order from the state government (Lucknow) to take action against Shukla for her comments on Facebook. Her post was shown to senior authorities in Lucknow by few people after which we were directed to suspend her. The post is in violation of service guidelines for Uttar Pradesh government employees,” added Prasad.

Defending herself, the now suspended teacher said that she had no intention to hurt any community or the government with her post.

“I had no intention to hurt any person or community through my post. People were wishing for Azmi’s death which reminded me of the iconic picture of a malnourished child with a vulture in the background in Sudan. I felt bad at the insensitivity of the people and how they reacted. I am a teacher and a poet, I have been writing on various social media platforms and for publications,” said Mridula Shukla.

The famous picture mentioned by Shukla was taken by the Pulitzer Prize winner Kevin Carter during the1993 famine in Sudan.

“I am submitting my written explanation to the department as the matter is between me and them. I agree that a government employee is bound by rules and regulations. I am hoping that my explanation will be accepted by the department. For now, I have been suspended, I have a family at home and I don’t want anybody to face implications because of my post,” added Shukla.

The district magistrate of Gautam Budh Nagar BN Singh said that the matter belongs to the education department and he is not involved in the matter.

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