A government-run primary school in Uttar Pradesh has attracted criticism after its principal was suspended for allegedly allowing Samajwadi chief Akhilesh Yadav’s birthday celebration on the campus of a government-run primary school. The Basic Education Department suspended Navin Kumar Tripathi, the headmaster of a government primary school in Parmat, Kanpur, for political activities inside the school. Tripathi failed to prevent the use of the government school for a political programme, which resulted in his suspension and the departmental investigation, it said.
The controversy started on 1 July when SP MLA Bajpai visited the school to celebrate the 53rd birthday of Akhilesh Yadav. They cut a cake and distributed school uniforms. The photo of the celebration with a picture of Akhilesh Yadav in the school went viral on social media and BJP leaders called the government taking over the education system.
After complaints, Basic Shiksha Adhikari Hari Om Singh ordered an inquiry, and Tripathi was suspended pending further investigation. Education department officials defended the move by saying government schools can’t be used for any programme connected with any political party.
"Government schools cannot be used for political programmes by any political party. Appropriate action has been taken based on the inquiry report," said officials.
But in the long run, the suspension has aggravated the political conflict between the BJP and the SP.
कृपया दोनों चित्रों में तुलना कर बताएं
— Amitabh Bajpai (@AmitabhBajpai) July 3, 2026
राजनीति किसमें ज्यादा है???
म से मोदीजी
या स्कूल ड्रेस pic.twitter.com/AsFo6M82cZ
Defending the programme, SP MLA Bajpai said the event was part of a long-standing welfare programme and not a political campaign. In the past ten years he had celebrated his own birthday and Yadav’s birthday simultaneously and also given uniforms, books and educational material to children in government schools.
"If this is a crime, then the government should explain why no action was taken when BJP leaders conducted political activities inside schools," Bajpai said.
He said the students were not involved in any political campaign and that the programme’s primary objective was to support schoolchildren through the distribution of educational materials.
Bajpai also questioned the government’s alleged double standards by referring to the instance of BJP MP Ramesh Awasthi. Awasthi visited a government school where children were taught phrases such as “M for Modi” and “N for Narendra,” but no action was taken against the school authorities.
"When children were taught 'M for Modi' and 'N for Narendra' in a government school by a BJP MP, no principal was suspended. Why is there one rule for the BJP and another for the Opposition?" he asked.
The Samajwadi Party calls the suspension a political vendetta and not an impartial administrative decision, saying that the BJP government is targeting Opposition leaders while ignoring similar actions involving its own representatives.
The BJP, however, rejected that comparison, saying government schools need to be free from partisan political activities. Party leaders argued that the display of photographs of a political leader, cutting a birthday cake and organising celebrations inside a government educational institution clearly represented a political programme and should be taken seriously.
Suspended principal Navin Kumar Tripathi denied any political event. In his written explanation to the education department, he said that MLA Amitabh Bajpai had arrived at the school without prior notice and that the school administration had neither invited him nor planned any birthday celebration.
Tripathi also claimed that the proposed uniform distribution programme had already been postponed due to official engagements and insisted that the school staff had no role in organising the event.
The controversy is coming at a time when Uttar Pradesh is in a politically charged mood and celebrations surrounding Akhilesh Yadav’s birthday have already triggered debate. Earlier in the week, posters depicting the SP chief as Lord Krishna and religious rituals organised by party workers drew strong criticism from BJP.
As the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections move closer, political tension between BJP and Samajwadi Party has deepened and events at government institutions are increasingly becoming a matter of intense political contestation.
