The circular directed the school authorities to conduct competitions such as essay writing, fancy dress and poetry writing to familiarise students with Deendayal Upadhayaya’s life and work. The decision to celebrate the birth centenary was taken by the BJP national executive at its meeting in Kozhikode in September last year. Kerala Students Union (KSU) activists held a march to the DDE office at Kozhikode in protest against the circular. The Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) and the Students Federation of India (SFI) too came out on Tuesday against the circular. The leadership of the DYFI and SFI pointed out that the decision to celebrate Upadhyaya’s birth centenary did not behove a secular society such as that in Kerala as it formed part of an RSS agenda.

Source: The Hindu October 24, 2017 18:00 UTC