School closure protest: Sanjay Singh launched ‘School Bachao Abhiyan’ in UP; ‘We want school, not liquor shops’. Bharat News

New Delhi: AAM AADMI Party (AAP) MP Sanjay Singh on Tuesday launched ‘School Bachao Abhiyan’ (Save School Abhiyan) in Jaunpur, in which the Uttar Pradesh government was slammed to close thousands of government schools. “Not liquor shops, we do not need schools,” Singh, with slogans, marched with local residents in a primary school in Merganj Khas, which was merged with another, which many children were unable to participate in classrooms.During his visit, Singh interacted with the students and his parents who said that the original school was closed on July 1 and the new 3 km is away. “How can young children walk far?” Asked a parent, that the route includes a dangerous highway. Local people appealed to Singh to help reopen the school, calling it important for the education and safety of their children.According to Singh, while more than 27,000 government schools have been closed across the state, the government led by Yogi Adityanath has allowed 27,308 new liquor shops to open. “We don’t want liquor shops, we want school,” he said. “I will take the children’s appeal to the Supreme Court.”Singh also cited the Right to Education (RTE) Act, which guarantees independent and compulsory education for children between 6 and 14 years of age, and suggests that a government school is available within 1 km. “The merged schools are 3-4 km away. Children are crossing the highways. It is dangerous and unjust,” he said.He announced that AAP would visit every village where a school is closed and would talk to the affected families. Singh said, “AAP will not remain silent. We will fight till the end to save these schools and maintain the right to education.”He ended his journey by walking in a new school with local residents, vowel to stand up with the children until his school was reopening.