I cannot fathom what made 25-year-old Sheikh Abdul Hafiz, a member of the Cockroach Janta Party, enter a government primary school in Karisunda to get a first-hand account of the basic amenities provided for students. Hafiz is a representative of the ‘School Thik Karo’ campaign, which was launched by CPJ convenor Abijeet Dipke from his own native village in the Hingoli district of Maharashtra on August 15.

Dipke made it a point to visit a zila parishad school in Santuk Pimpri village, which, he found, lacked basic amenities, such as water supply in toilets, proper windows, and enough benches for students. He further announced CPJ members would prepare a checklist for government schools across the country and make it public. He also questioned the growing disparity between facilities available in private schools and government schools and felt a proper audit was needed as to where the government money in the educational sector was being spent.

Fair enough. But for Hafiz to go alone to his own primary school in Karisunda, where he had studied, to prepare a checklist of what amenities the school was providing was foolhardy, to say the least. West Bengal has a history of political violence spanning decades across successive governments, and the present Chief Minister, Suvendu Adhikari, is an offspring of the same culture.

Attack On Hafiz’s Family

Hours after his visit, his family was attacked in their home, and his father, Sheikh Mohammad Mafik, died of injuries on August 15. The police have arrested eight people, including a BJP leader. Mafik’s killing has sent shock waves around the country. What could be more heinous than killing an innocent man simply because his son wanted to check on infrastructure gaps in schools? The........

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