A teacher in Bihar's Katihar district refused to sing "Vande Mataram" sparking angry protests by locals. There was chaos and confusion during the Republic Day event after Afzal Hussain did not sing "Vande Mataram".
Afzal Hussain told news agency ANI that saying or singing ''Vande Mataram'' is "against his religious beliefs and the Constitution also does not say that he must sing the song". Locals and others in the school allegedly pushed and hit him when he refused to sing after flag hoisting.
Afzal Hussain alleged that he could have "lost his life" after he was attacked.
The Bihar education minister told reporters that action will be taken if an incident of this kind has occurred. "Insult of national song is not forgivable at all," KN Prasad told news agency ANI.
The district education officer, Dinesh Chandra Dev, however, told reporters that he has not received any complaint yet. "Had we got any such information, an investigation would have been done," Mr Dev said.
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