Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) [India], August 5 : Amid a controversy over 'PDA paathshala', Samajwadi Party Chief Akhilesh Yadav on Tuesday emphasised that the pathshala cannot be stopped by the police and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath must attend it and see the conditions.
Speaking to the media, Yadav asserted that his party will continue to teach students until new teachers are recruited for schools that have been closed or merged by the state government.
"PDA pathshala cannot be stopped by the police. The CM himself must attend the pathshala and see the conditions. The government has itself accepted that it has closed many schools and also merged some of them... Samajwadi Party workers will teach students till the time new teachers are recruited for those schools...," the SP Chief said.
Earlier, Uttar Pradesh Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president Bhupendra Singh Chaudhary came down heavily on SP for lessons being taught in its 'PDA paathshala' while accusing them of promoting nepotism, claiming that it remains fundamental to the party.
He alleged that the Samajwadi Party was trying to "tamper" with the future of children.
"When the SP was in power, they tampered with the future of children, and they are still doing it today. To fulfil their political interests, the SP can go to the extent of teaching children 'A for 'Akhilesh' and D for 'Dimple.' Their school is only about nepotism. They cannot move beyond their family," Chaudhary told ANI.
Samajwadi Party (SP) Rajya Sabha MP Ram Gopal Yadav on Monday morning condemned the FIR against his party leader Farhad Alam for alleged politicisation of English alphabets in 'PDA Paathshala', and said that this was a result of "ignorant people" and those with "petty mindset" sitting in power.
Defending the lessons taught in the PDA Paathshala of Samajwadi Party, Yadav asked, "If we teach 'A for Akhilesh', 'B for Babasaheb', what is wrong with it?"
"When ignorant people and those with a petty mindset sit in power in Uttar Pradesh, such things happen every day. Bacche jisse kisi shabd ko sikh jaye, padhane ka vahi tarika sabse accha hota hai [The best method of teaching children is deploying ways through which children can learn (easily)]. They are not being taught in a government school. Those who have filed the FIR will have an FIR registered against them for misuse of their rights," Yadav told ANI.