A 60-year-old headmaster of a government school in Chhattisgarh's Bilaspur district has been arrested for allegedly hurting religious sentiments after administering a pledge to people not to believe in Hindu gods and to embrace Buddhism, police said on Monday.
The incident took place on January 22, following which the district education officer suspended Ratalal Sarovar, who was posted as headmaster of a government primary school in Bharari village, an official said.
On January 22, when the consecration of Ram Lalla's idol was held at the Ayodhya temple, Sarovar gathered a group of people including children in Mohtarai village under Ratanpur police station limits.
He allegedly administered them a pledge not to worship Hindu gods, including Lord Shiv, Ram and Krishna, and to follow Buddhism, a police official said quoting a complaint by Rupesh Shukla, an office-bearer of a right wing organisation.
The incident came to light after a video of Sarovar's alleged act went viral on social media, he said.
The complaint claimed his act hurt the sentiments of the followers of Sanatan Dharma, the official said.
Based on the complaint, Sarovar was arrested on Sunday.
He was booked under Indian Penal Code sections 153A (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, etc and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony) and 295A (deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings of any class, the official said.
A probe was underway into the case, the police added.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
Featured Video Of The Day
Video Shows Students Drinking Beer At Chhattisgarh School; Probe Ordered "Cruel To Subject Child To Physical Violence In Name Of Discipline": Court 13 Injured After School Roof Gets Ripped Off During Windstorm In Chhattisgarh Amazon Employee Greets Friend At Wedding, Dies Of Cardiac Arrest TIME Magazine Shares Elon Musk's To-Do List, He Responds This Asian City Is Emerging As Sex Tourism Hub. It's Not Where You Think "Speculative, Inaccurate": Canada Factchecks Own Media Over India Charges Want To Read Voice Notes? WhatsApp Brings To You Voice Message Transcripts In Bihar, Teacher And Principal Walk Into School Drunk, Arrested Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.