At a time when multiple disturbing incidents in Dravidian model run government schools have come to light ranging from students being served worm-infested mid-day meals to children being forced to carry bricks for school construction, Dravidianist actor Karthi whose family remain subservient to the DMK first family heaped praises on School Education Minister Anbil Mahesh saying that government schools under him are functioning superbly.
Participating in the centenary celebrations of the Sulur Government School, actor Karthi stated,
“In Tamil Nadu, around 65 lakh children are studying in government schools, while the remaining 40 lakh or so are studying in private schools. So, for nearly three-fourths of students living in rural areas, their only hope for education is the government schools. In that regard, government schools are functioning very well. All the students who are currently at Agaram (Foundation) also come from a background of having studied in government schools.”
However, his remarks have not gone down well with many netizens, who were quick to point out the disconnect between his statement and the ground reality. Social media users criticized Karthi and his family’s consistent support of the DMK, sarcastically questioning, “If government schools are doing so well, why did your brother, actor Suriya, send his children to study in Mumbai? Are they enrolled in any government-run school?”
பின்ன எதுக்கு சூர்யா அண்ணன் மும்பை ல தன்னோட குழந்தைகளை படிக்க வைக்கிறார்?? pic.twitter.com/UvQ36e99H7
— Manikandan 🇮🇳 (@manikandan_cpkm) June 13, 2025
But is the reality as rosy as actor Karthi claims? Evidence suggests otherwise. In truth, many government schools in Tamil Nadu continue to face serious challenges: lack of basic infrastructure, students forced to share a single functional toilet, children studying under trees due to the absence of classrooms, mid-day meals that reek of foul odor, and, in some cases, students being made to carry construction materials or perform other manual tasks. These ground realities paint a far more troubling picture than the one being projected.
Administrative Failures
Let’s take a look at how the administration has deteriorated over the past few years under the DMK government.
- On 12 June 2025, Kallakurichi government school students were served with food contaminated with worms and bugs. Students in a viral video emotionally pleading with the state’s education minister for clean and safe mid-day meals. According to reports, the mid-day meal served was prepared using rice that had been stored unused for over a month during the summer break. As a result, the food was spoiled, filled with worms, and emitted a strong foul odor.
- On 12 June 2025Students at CV Government School in Thoothukudi were compelled to carry hollow bricks for ongoing school construction work.
- On 2 June 2025, students at Tirunelveli’s Manakavalam Pillai Nagar government school continue to face poor conditions as a new building promised three years ago remains incomplete, forcing them to study in a temporary rented space with just one shared restroom. DMK councillor Indira led a protest, criticizing her own party for neglecting the project and demanding urgent action.
- On 5 April 2025, Two staff members at a government primary school in Kollamedu were arrested for assaulting a fifth-grade student who questioned the missing eggs during lunch. The student confronted staff after finding eggs hidden in the kitchen, prompting the cook and assistant to attack her with a broom.
- On 26 March 2025, Ponnagaram villagers protested against the government as students at the Government High School have been forced to study under tree shades and temporary sheds for six years due to the lack of proper classrooms, despite the school’s strong academic performance. The school serves 272 students with only two classrooms and one toilet, forcing villagers to build makeshift shelters.
- On 10 March 2025, Students at a government school in Thiruvallur were compelled by their headmaster and teachers to carry bricks on a holiday. Locals have accused the headmaster of mistreating the students and disregarding multiple warnings about this forced labor.
- On 9 November 2024, a government-aided girls’ school in VK Puram, near Ambasamudram, screened Tamil films such as Vijay’s ‘GOAT’ to senior students and Rajinikanth’s ‘Vettaiyan’ to younger students, with charges of ₹25 and ₹10 per student, respectively.
- The government secondary school in Theethipalayam, Coimbatore, faced a severe classroom shortage, leading to a decline in student admissions and forcing existing students to attend classes under trees and in the parking area. Despite ongoing construction, about 100 students in classes 8 and 9 are left without proper facilities.
- On 27 August 2024, three students were injured when a section of the ceiling plaster fell on them during class at a government-run school in Krishnagiri. The accident raised significant concerns about the safety and structural integrity of the building, which had only been opened two months ago with MPLADS fund. In another similar incident July 2024, a ceiling of a newly constructed Panchayat Union Middle School near Kanchipuram collapsed, wher the building, completed three months prior.
- On August 2024, another ceiling of a classroom at a government school in Thiruporur collapsed, injuring five female students and sparking protests from parents who questioned the quality of the construction.
- On 12 June 2024, the administration of St. Paul’s Girls’ Higher Secondary School in Mayiladuthurai forced students to clean their classrooms to “instill” discipline, a practice exposed when a ninth-grade student refused and was slapped by a teacher.
- The Government Higher Secondary School in Mogappair, Chennai, became a site of student distress due to poor conditions, including unhygienic facilities and unsafe infrastructure. Girl students raised alarming concerns that they were subjected to verbal harassment and forced cleaning duties, with teachers complicit in the mistreatment.
- In 2023, a disturbing video went viral showing mentally challenged students at a Tamil Nadu government-aided school, run by the Church of South India (CSI), being forced to clean toilets. The students, attending the CSI School for the Mentally Challenged in Sivakasi, were reportedly made to perform this task as part of their school routine. The incident, involving over 100 students, sparked outrage after the video was shared on social media.
Proselytization Attempts At Govt Schools
So far, we only saw the regular failures. Did you know that government schools even became a targt for proselytization? Take a look at the number of times this happened.
- On 2 May 2025, schoolchildren in Pollachi were taken without parental consent from a government school to a church, where they were forced to pray and undergo religious instruction under the guise of a health awareness camp. Parents, shocked by the incident and the attempt at religious conversion, confronted the organizers and rescued their children, leading to police filing a case against those involved.
- In October 2024, the headmistress of Government High School in Diwanshah Pudur allowed Friday Namaz to be held on school premises, disrupting the secular environment. The prayers have been conducted regularly such practices may cause religious discord and mental distress as the school serves a diverse student body
- In August 2023, protests erupted in Acchankuttam village, Tenkasi, over concerns that a government-aided Christian school was engaging in proselytization. The Tahsildar filed a complaint, leading to police action against 12 individuals accused of inciting communal unrest by mobilizing Hindu parents to withdraw their children from the school. The case stems from fears of religious conversion within the school.
- In 2022, Beatrice Thangam, a tailoring teacher at a government school in Kanyakumari district, Tamil Nadu, was accused of making objectionable remarks about Hindus and attempting to preach Christianity to her students. A Class 6 student revealed in a video that Thangam referred to Hindus as “sathaan” (devil), forced students to read the Bible, and even made them kneel and recite Christian prayers. The teacher allegedly pressured Hindu students to stitch Christian crosses and dismissed the Bhagavad Gita as “bad.”
- In 2022, a 17 year old girl studying at Sacred Heart Higher Secondary School in Thirukattupalli near Thanjavur, committed suicide by drinking poison after she was allegedly tortured to convert to Christianity by the school for her to continue her studies.
Caste Pride & Violence
For all the credit that the Dravidianists claim for “eradicating caste”, we have seen a huge surge in caste violence in schools. Here are a few such instances:
- A 10th-grade student at a government-aided school in Sripuram, Tirunelveli, was dismissed for carrying weapons, including a sickle and knives, after a student clash. The weapons were discovered during a routine bag check on 18 September 2024. .
- On 30 July 2024, two students at the Government Higher Secondary School in Valliyoor, Tirunelveli, were injured in a caste-related clash triggered by derogatory remarks about a specific caste written on a toilet wall.
- In December 2023, students from Periyar Government Higher Secondary School in Cheranmahadevi attacked students from a nearby polytechnic college over caste issues, leaving one student stabbed.
- On August 2023, three students from a dominant caste assaulted a Scheduled Caste teenager and his sister in Nanguneri. The violence resulted in injuries and hospitalisations, shocking the community.
- On 1 July 2024, another instance of caste-based pride sparked a clash among 12th-grade students at Rosalind Chelliah Government Higher Secondary School in Maruthakulam village, Nanguneri, Tirunelveli.
Sexual Assault/Harassment At Govt Schools Surged
If caste violence and other administrative failures weren’t enough, the government schools also saw sexual assault cases peak under the DMK.
- On February 2025, Kumaresan (57), a lab assistant at a government school in Salem, was arrested under the POCSO Act for allegedly sexually harassing female students.
- A second-grade student at Podhavur government primary school in Trichy was allegedly sexually assaulted by teacher Jayaraj Susainathan while cleaning the classroom. Following a complaint from the parents, Jayaraj was arrested. It has been revealed that there have been sexual harassment complaints against him for the past decade, with the teacher reportedly threatening the students and their families during this time.
- A 58-year-old assistant headmaster of a government high school in Pudukottai was arrested on 17 February 2025 under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act for allegedly sexually harassing multiple girl students.
- Sivakumar, a 40-year-old temporary physical education teacher, allegedly sexually harassed the 11th grade student and violated her by making inappropriate comments about her appearance. Following an investigation Omalur All Women Police Station registered a case under the POCSO Act.
- 3 Govt School Teachers – Arumugam (48), Chinnaswamy (57), and Prakash (37) in Krishnagiri arrested under the POCSO Act for Gang-Raping a 8th grade student resulting in pregnancy and an abortion
- Ilayakannu, a 37-year-old teacher from Neyyamali, Bettanayakkanpalayam, Salem district, had been arrested under POCSO act for sexually harassing 10th and 11th grade students at the Yercaud government higher secondary school.
- On 3 September 2024, Dr. S. Samson Daniel (31), a government doctor, was arrested under the POCSO Act on sexually assaulting minor girls at a hostel affiliated with a government-aided school in Trichy. His mother, S. Grace Sagayarani (54), who is the headmistress of the school, was also taken into custody for helping to cover up the offenses.
- On August 2024, a 13-year-old girl was allegedly sexually assaulted by a Naam Tamizhar Katchi (NTK) functionary named Sivaraman during a fake National Cadet Corps (NCC) camp at a private school near Bargur in Krishnagiri district.
- A math teacher Sundara Vadivelu working at a corporation school at Noyyal Road in Tiruppur was arrested for sexually harassing multiple students, and allegedly targeted seventh-grade students over the past few months. Sources indicate that more than ten children have come forward with complaints so far.
- Suresh, a Tamil teacher at Ariyalur Government School, was arrested under the POCSO Act for sexually harassing a 6th-grade student. He threatened the student’s life to keep it secret, but she informed her parents, who then filed a police complaint.
Substance Abuse
A Chennai school in Kalyanapuram, Vyasarpadi, has become a hotspot for underage substance abuse, with students as young as pre-teens consuming beer and tobacco. A report on 23 August 2024, revealed a Class IX girl drinking beer in the classroom on her birthday, with her Class VII brother purchasing it, while three Class X boys were caught smoking Beedis. These incidents highlight a disturbing trend of substance abuse among students at the school.
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