Hindutva groups attack activists protesting removal of Malala’s book from Ahmedabad school
Ahmedabad: Hindutva groups, including the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Bajrang Dal, have assaulted activists protesting the removal of books by Pakistani Nobel Laureate Malala Yousafzai and German Jewish author Anne Frank from the syllabus of a school in Ahmedabad in BJP-ruled Gujarat state.
According to Kashmir Media Service, the groups had opposed the inclusion of Malala Yousafzai’s memoir I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban in the reading programme at Anand Niketan School’s Shilaj campus. Hindutva activists described the books as “books of other religions” and “objectionable material”, while some cited Yousafzai’s past comments on issues including Kashmir as “anti-India.”
Amid the protests, the private Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE)-affiliated school dropped Malala’s book from the reading programme or made it optional.
Participants said that members associated with the VHP and Bajrang Dal disrupted the gathering, leading to scuffles and injuries to several protesters.
Bajrang Dal Gujarat also posted two clips of the confrontation on social media, showing a group of men thrashing a person and confronting activists reading books in the park.
The move sparked a strong civil-society response, with hundreds of academics, students, and citizens issued solidarity statements supporting the school’s academic autonomy and criticizing external pressure, including threats against Muslim students and teachers. On Thursday, around 70 people held a silent reading protest at a municipal garden in Vastrapur near the District Education Officer (DEO) office, reading various titles, including works related to the controversy.
The incident and the campaign against Malala’s book have also drawn criticism from activists and journalists.
Gujarat-based journalist Deepal Trivedi called the development a “dangerous path” and an example of “intolerance.” “When reading itself becomes a crime and choice of books becomes a battleground, Gujarat must ask: where is its respect for freedom, diversity and democracy?” she said.
