UP Police Block SFI Leaflet Campaign Against Govt School Closures in Lucknow; Activists Defy Attempt to Stop Protest

Lucknow: Hundreds of police personnel descended on Suhani Market in Lucknow to block an SFI leaflet distribution campaign protesting the closure of government schools in Uttar Pradesh, but activists defied the police presence and continued their campaign undeterred. Around 30 leaders and workers, including SFI All India President Adarsh M. Saji, UP State President Parth, and Secretary Abdul Wahab, were stopped by police.

Uttar Pradesh is among the states in India with the highest number of government school closures, with over 27,000 government schools having been shut down. SFI has been conducting statewide agitations highlighting both the deplorable condition of existing schools and the ongoing wave of closures — campaigns that are building towards a 'Chalo Lucknow' legislative march planned for December.

The SFI Central Committee condemned the Yogi government for attempting to suppress voices speaking up for students' rights by deploying police against peaceful campaigners. The organisation declared that the struggle to protect government schools — where ordinary students from working-class families study — would continue without let-up.