New Delhi: A petition asking for yoga to be made compulsory in schools across the country from class 1 to 8 has been rejected by the Supreme Court on Tuesday.
The apex court told the petitioners – lawyer and BJP spokesperson Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay and JC Seth – that such matter falls within the domain of the legislature, and the court cannot decide what is to be taught in schools.
“We are nobody to say what is to be taught in schools. It is none of our business. How can we direct that,” a bench headed by Justice MB Lokur said. “What is to be taught in schools is not a fundamental right,” it said.
Upadhyay had sought a direction to the Ministry of Human Resources Development, NCERT, NCTE and CBSE to “provide standard textbooks of ‘yoga and health education’ for students of Class 1-8 keeping in spirit various fundamental rights such as right to life, education and equality.”
The apex court had on November 29 last year asked the Centre to treat the petition as a representation and take a decision.
The plea had said, “State has an obligation to provide health facilities to all the citizens, especially to children and adolescents. In a welfare state, it is obligation of the State to ensure the creation and sustenance of conditions congenial to good health.”
The petition further said that right to health cannot be secured without providing ‘yoga and health education’ to all children or framing a ‘national yoga policy’ to promote and propagate it.
The third edition of International Day of Yoga was celebrated across the world on June 22 this year.
The drive to promote yoga has also been criticised by the Opposition, which has accused the BJP and its ideological mentor, the RSS, of pursuing its Hindutva agenda.
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