IMPHAL, Feb 18: The banned Maoist Communist Party Manipur has in a press statement said the Catholic schools in Manipur are still spreading Christianity in the name of moral education defying its earlier direction issued in 2012 to make schools in Manipur secular.
Little Flower School, St Joseph School, Nirmalabas School, Catholic School and St Jyoti School are still teaching a subject called `Moral Education`™ which only teaches moral education based on Christianity only, it said.
It is a right step to provide moral education however the moral education given at these five school is based only on one specific religion i.e. Christianity, it maintained.
Building churches in the school compound and spreading religion still continues defying the direction, it said.
This step is a challenge to the indigenous people of this land and a wrong meaning of the word secularism, it said.
Maoist while giving a deadline to stop teaching this particular subject before February 20 has also announced a 12 hours general strike on February 22, Sunday, from 6 am till 6 pm, in four valley districts of the State, if the school continues to teach the said subject and speared religion.
The said general strike will be effective in Imphal East, Imphal West, Thoubal and Lamangdong, it said.
The general strike has been called on Sunday considering the ongoing class X and XII examinations. Electricity, media, medical and ritual functions are exempted from the preview of the general strike, it said.
Further, if it still continues, Maoist will lock down the said schools from February 23, it warned.