The Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) has proposed that practising yoga should be made compulsory for all corporators in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). In a notice of motion, MNS corporator Sandeep Deshpande suggested that corporators should be made to do asanas and surya namaskar on five days in a month along with civic school students. The proposal is likely to be discussed in the general body meeting on September 30.
Deshpande said that corporators have to interact with several people in a day, making them susceptible to various infections. “If making yoga compulsory for students is being proposed, then why can’t corporators be made do asanas? In fact, they must practise yoga along with students studying in civic schools in areas under their jurisdiction.” Corporators failing to do so should be disqualified, said Deshpande.
The Samajwadi Party (SP) has called it MNS’s “political stunt” and said that these cannot be the grounds for disqualification of corporators. “This is ‘dadagiri’. The proposal makes no sense. You cannot compel any corporator or disqualify him on these grounds. We will discuss this with the mayor,” said Rais Shaikh, corporator, SP.
Controversy
- The BJP’s proposal to make yoga compulsory for civic school students created a controversy last month. The SP termed the proposal an attempt to ”saffronise education” and “mix religion with education”.
- It has also moved Bombay high court over the resolution passed by the BJP-Sena majority in BMC.
- Civic chief Ajoy Mehta is yet to take a decision on the resolution.
The BMC runs 1,188 primary and 49 secondary schools in Mumbai, which includes around 400 Urdu-medium schools.