Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): State Minister Uday Pratap Singh has clarified his stance on guest teachers after his "atithi" comment created a stir across Madhya Pradesh.
Speaking to the media on Saturday, he clarified, "Guest teachers are our state's children. Their welfare is our priority. (Wo humare Madhya Pradesh ke bacchhe hain. Unka hit humare liye sabse pehle hai.)
A video of the same has surfaced on social media and is garnering many views. In the video, he said that he considers all the guest teachers as the state's own children, and there is no bad blood between us. Continuing, he said that the department is doing everything in its power to come up with a solution.
Watch the video here:
According to information, on September 18th, MP's School Education Minister Uday Pratap Singh sparked a controversy when he was asked about his view on guest teachers' demand of regularisation permanent jobs.
"Wo atithi hain, aur atithi kya ghar par kabza kar lenge?" They are guests here; can they take over the house?. This comment started a war of words with Congress chief Jitu Patwari calling it an insult of the guest faculty.
Guest teachers too staged protests outside the minister's residence on Friday.
The next day, on September 21, three days after the row, Minister Singh came out and cleared things up about his remark. While talking to the press, Singh exclaimed that he considers the teachers as the state's own kids and there is no bad blood between the two. Furthermore, he said that the department thinks about them and is working to eradicate the problems they have. Continuing, he said that they should know that they are on top of our priority list and the department is concerned about them.
Oppositions remarks
When asked about the opposition's reaction to his comment, Singh said that the opposition just needs a topic to attack the government and stop them from doing their work. He also said that the opposition should not interfere, as this is between him and the guest teachers. He said that if any guest teacher was hurt by his words, then he apologised for the same.
