They have stolen plates of children: Rahul Gandhi slams BJP over Madhya Pradesh mid-day meal controversy

Sheopur (Madhya Pradesh): A disturbing video has emerged from a government school in Madhya Pradesh’s Sheopur district, showing underprivileged children being served their mid-day meal on scrap paper laid on the bare ground, sparking widespread outrage and raising questions about the implementation of the central government’s flagship nutrition scheme.

The footage, which quickly went viral on social media, shows young students sitting on the dusty floor of the school compound without any shelter as their meals were served on torn pieces of paper. No teachers were seen present during the incident.

Following the public outcry, Sheopur District Collector Arpit Verma ordered an immediate inquiry led by the Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM). The self-help group responsible for distributing the meals has been suspended, and a show-cause notice has been issued to the school principal. District Education Officer ML Garg has also suspended Bhogiram Dhakad, the in-charge of Hullpur Secondary School.

“This kind of behaviour towards children is completely unacceptable. Such inhumanity will not be tolerated at any level in the future,” said Collector Verma.

The incident has once again highlighted serious gaps in the implementation of the Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman (PM Poshan) scheme, formerly known as the Mid-Day Meal Scheme, which aims to provide nutritious and hygienic meals to children in government and aided schools.

Local reports suggest that negligence in meal distribution is a recurring problem, with students often being served substandard food or made to eat without proper utensils.

Rahul Gandhi slams BJP

Reacting to the viral video, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi launched a scathing attack on the BJP government, saying both the chief minister and the prime minister should be “ashamed for nurturing the future of the country in such a pitiable state.”

Sharing the video on X (formerly Twitter), Gandhi wrote: “I am heading to Madhya Pradesh today. And ever since I saw this news that children there are being served mid-day meals on newspapers, my heart is broken.

“These are the same innocent children on whose dreams the future of the country rests and they are not even getting a plate of dignity,” he said.

“More than 20 years of BJP government and they have even stolen the plates of children — their ‘development’ is just an illusion, the real secret to coming to power is ‘the system’,” he alleged.

“Such a chief minister and prime minister should feel ashamed for nurturing the future of the country’s children in this pitiable state,” the Congress leader added.

The BJP government, which had pledged in its 2023 assembly election manifesto to improve the quality of mid-day meals across the state, has yet to issue an official statement on the controversy.

(With PTI inputs)