Black ribbons on Teacher’s Day to protest ‘insult’ by MLA Bamb

Nagpur: Zilla parishad school teachers unanimously implemented their decision to wear black ribbons while teaching on Monday, to mark their protest against recent incidents. The main issue was BJP MLA Prashant Bamb (Gangapur, Aurangabad) who claimed that government school teachers fraudulently claim HRA.
As protests intensified in various districts on Monday, the MLA visited some teachers to “pay respects” on the occassion of Teacher’s Day. Videos of Bamb washing the feet of two government school teachers went viral on social media with many teacher associations claiming moral victory by saying the MLA has literally apologized.
However, speaking to a regional channel in Aurangabad, Bamb did not correlate this to an apology. “I respect teachers and the work they do. I just did everything from my heart,” Bamb is seen saying in a video clip.
Back in Nagpur, teachers not only protested at their respective schools but a few even gathered at Samvidhan Chowk. In a rare show of unity, around eight different teacher associations came together to condemn Bamb’s statements.
Teachers did not hold back in their protests with every ZP school ensuring that their staff clicked photos with the school’s name clearly visible. Some teachers shared photos of their protest with superimposed messages saying their protest is against those who “insult teachers”.
A senior teacher, who is part of the coordination committee for the teachers’ associations in Nagpur district, said, “We usually have differences over issues and what stand to take. But MLA Bamb seems to have united all associations in Maharashtra to stand together. I think the only other issue which brought the associations together like this is related to salary.”
With Bamb’s gesture today in Aurangabad and videos going viral in teachers’ groups, some expect that the issue may now settle down. The coordination committee member, however, said, “I think he should apologize to all teachers. He made a public statement against us, so a public apology is needed.”