The silver lining in the entire episode is that Shaikh, rather than bending, has asserted her constitutional rights and sense of professional duty.
Liking a post on social media that valorises a Hamas fighter after what happened on October 7 is not expected from a school principal, especially one who has a stellar record leading an institution. But if the management of the Somaiya School in Mumbai presses its demand for Parveen Shaikh’s resignation, it will hurt the school. It will also send a chilling message to its students, and future citizens: That the price for expressing a political opinion, even if it is unpopular, is too high. If the principal can be fired for this, why should students debate at all? The school seems to be another in a line of institutions, great and small, that are willing to sacrifice their autonomy and “cancel” employees for expressing an opinion. However, the Somaiya School saga, as it has unfolded so far, also offers a ray of hope.
According to her own account, Shaikh did not even know of the consternation caused by her posts till the school management began pressuring her to resign. Her words were picked up by an online portal, and the article was cited by the management when it asked her to leave. Shaikh has been with the school for 12 years, and has officiated as its principal for the last seven of them. According to reports, she has done well at her job and has thus far enjoyed a good relationship with the school authorities. “The management has always been supportive and positive,” she told this newspaper and claimed that she was told that the decision to ask her to resign was a “tough” one. Unfortunately, principals and school administrators being in the dock is not a one-off. In July 2023, a video of the principal of a convent school in Pune being beaten up, allegedly by VHP and Bajrang Dal activists, went viral. Among the reasons for the assault was the recitation of a Christian prayer at the school, and not of other faiths. Such incidents betray an unfortunate regression in institutions that should have been spaces for engagement with multiple points of view. Sites of education, and now even the views of educators on social media, seem to be under the scanner for the wrong reasons.
The silver lining in the entire episode is that Shaikh, rather than bending, has asserted her constitutional rights and sense of professional duty. ” I live in democratic India; I hold the principle of freedom of speech in high regard as it is a cornerstone of democracy… I will not resign because I have given hundred per cent to the organisation,” she said. A significant number of parents too have reached out to the Trust that manages the school to express their support for Shaikh. The Somaiya School should stand by its principal and serve as an example for education leaders across the country. And, as a professional who leads an institution of learning, Shaikh should realise that her “liking” a social media post may be personal but its import will be public.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
First uploaded on: 03-05-2024 at 07:36 IST
