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Teachers’ cluster meetings disrupted

MALAPPURAM: Attempts by the United Democratic Front (UDF)-backed organisations to disrupt the cluster meetings of teachers led to violence at several places in the district on Friday. A few teachers and police personnel were injured in the clashes at Ponnad, near Vazhakkad, and Karippol, near Kuttippuram.

Although cluster meetings in other places will be held on Saturday, the meetings for teachers of Muslim schools were held on Friday.

Activists of the youth wing of the Indian Union Muslim League attempted to disrupt the cluster meetings at the Government UP Schools at Poonad and Karipol, and AUP School, Mambad. Teachers’ organisations of the UDF boycotted the cluster meetings.

In spite of disruption at several places, the meetings took place without any hitch at several other places under the 13 block resource centres in the district.

Saji Jacob, a teacher at the Government UP School, Kuttassery; Shaju, teacher at AUP School, Mundakkal; and Mohammed Haneefa, sub-inspector at Vazhakkad police station, were injured when protesters disrupted the meeting at Karipol. Teachers supporting the Left Democratic Front (LDF) alleged that the police had aided the protesters at Karipol.

The joint council of UDF teachers’ unions said it would boycott the cluster meetings to be held in other parts of the State on Saturday. The protest will be against the State government’s “anti-teacher policies.”

C.P. Cheriya Muhammed, general convener of the joint council, said the government had failed to keep its word that the sixth working day necessitated by the cluster meetings would be compensated by giving an extra off-day.

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