Dumka: Around 300 students of the 70-year-old Upgraded Middle School at Chandna in Deoghar’s Sonaraythari block were left without classes after the school premises were sealed following a court order in a two-decade-old land dispute case.Students who arrived at the school on Monday morning were shocked to find the gate locked. Braving rain, they staged a protest outside the campus, raising slogans against the district administration and the education department and demanding immediate reopening of the school.The agitation intensified after Block Education Extension Officer (BEEO) Amitabh Jha reached the spot to assess the situation. Students and parents surrounded the official, alleging that the education department had failed to make alternative arrangements for the affected children.Jha was reportedly prevented from leaving the premises. Police later reached the spot, persuaded the protesters and safely escorted the BEEO out.Block development officer (BDO) Neelam Kumari also visited the school and held discussions with students and parents, assuring them that the issue would be resolved at the earliest.“We came to school expecting classes, not a sealed gate. How will we study now?” the students asked the BDO.The protest briefly disrupted vehicular movement on the road outside the school before normalcy was restored.District superintendent of education (DSE) Madhukar Kumar said, “Students of Chandna school will be officially tagged to a nearby school by Tuesday. Our priority is to ensure that no child’s education suffers because of the legal dispute.”The DSE added that the department was consulting legal experts regarding the court order. “If required, we will file an appeal before the appropriate bench of the high court,” he said..
Students brave rain while protesting school closure and sealed
school
The school that has been shut