School closures protest: Sanjay Singh launches ‘School Bachao Abhiyan’ in UP; says ‘we want schools, not liquor shops’ | India News
NEW DELHI: Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MP Sanjay Singh on Tuesday launched the ‘School Bachao Abhiyan’ (Save Schools Campaign) in Jaunpur, slamming the Uttar Pradesh government for shutting down thousands of government schools. With the slogan “Not Liquor Shops, We Need Schools,” Singh marched with local residents to a primary school in Meerganj Khas that had been merged with another, leaving many children unable to attend classes.During his visit, Singh interacted with students and their parents, who said the original school was shut on July 1 and the new one is 3 km away. “How can small children walk that far?” asked one parent, adding that the route includes a dangerous highway. Locals appealed to Singh to help reopen the school, calling it vital for their children’s education and safety.According to Singh, while over 27,000 government schools have been closed across the state, the Yogi Adityanath-led government has allowed 27,308 new liquor shops to open. “We don’t want liquor shops, we want schools,” he said. “I will take the children’s appeal to the Supreme Court.”Singh also cited the Right to Education (RTE) Act, which guarantees free and compulsory education for children aged 6 to 14, and mandates that a government school be available within 1 km. “The merged schools are 3–4 km away. Children are crossing highways. This is dangerous and unjust,” he said.He announced that AAP will visit every village where a school has been shut and speak to affected families. “AAP will not stay silent. We will fight to the end to save these schools and uphold the Right to Education,” Singh said.He ended his visit by walking with local residents to the new school, vowing to stand with the children until their school is reopened.
