A headmistress in Assam brings beef for lunch, gets jailed

New Delhi, May 19: A headmistress of a school in Assam has been jailed for bringing cooked beef to school for her lunch, officials informed PTI on Thursday.

The incident occurred in Goalpara district of Assam and headmistress Daliman Nessa was taken to the police station on May 16 after a complaint was lodged against her.

The complaint was given by the president of the management committee of Hurkachungi Middle English School of Lakhipur, Additional superintendent of police, Mrinal Deka. "We brought her to the police station on May 16. After questioning she was arrested and the court sent her to judicial custody on the next day," he added.

She brought the cooked beef during the 'Gunotsav 2022', a state-wide exercise to evaluate school performance held between May 11 and May 14. "The school management committee said that she had brought beef to school for lunch, and was serving it to some members of the staff, which created a sense of discomfort among them," Indian Express quoted a police officer as saying.

The incident had "upset both religious communities" in the school, he claimed.

The cops booked the case under Sections 295(A) (deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs) and 153(A) (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony) of the Indian Penal Code.

The Assam Cattle Preservation Act, 2021, bans cattle slaughter and sale of beef in areas where Hindus, Jains and Sikhs are in a majority and in areas within a five-km radius of a temple or satra (Vaishnavite monastery).