Surat principal suspended for Dubai Trips without NOC

Surat : The principal of the Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC)-run Nagar Prathamik Shikshan Samiti (NPSS) school has been suspended with immediate effect by the state government for travelling abroad about 23 times without obtaining permission despite being in government service. 

According to the information received, Sanjay Patel, principal of the NPSS school number 285 in Amroli travelled to Dubai multiple times without NOC. Based on which an investigation was started and it was found that the accused was doing business in Dubai and continuned working as the principal of the NPSS school. It has been reported that he traveled to Dubai 33 times in the year 2023.

The principal has now gone on medical leave citing an accident. If any teacher or principal travels abroad, it is mandatory to inform the concerned officer by obtaining NOC. A notice has been given to the accused teacher to explain his foreign travel. If he has gone to Dubai, proof of stamps of the Dubai immigration will be obtained from his passport.  An intensive investigation has been started regarding the complaint of repeated leave without informing or illegally.

The teacher is also said to have helped managed funds to the tune of Rs 3.50 crore for the nephew of former BJP MLA from Wadhvan assembly Dhanji Patel. The nephew identified as Chandresh Makasana did not return the money and lent by one Jignesh and Kuldeep Solanki. 

After that, Jignesh and Kuldeep demanded money from Chandresh, but till today the money has not been returned. On November 19, both of them called teacher Sanjay Patel and said that Jignesh had called them and had called them to Kuldeep’s office in Maninagar for business.

A day after receiving the call, the teacher reached Kuldeep’s office in Maninagar. Where Jignesh and Kuldeep beat the teacher badly and forcibly took away his two phones, purse and car and locked them in the office. After that, Kuldeep, along with his driver and a man named Rocky, forcibly put the teacher in his own car and set off for Surendranagar Valai. Meanwhile, after talking to Jignesh, who had borrowed money on the way, they reached their office again.

State Education Minister Prafulbhai Pansheriya said that while lakhs of teachers in the state are performing their duties conscientiously, details of only 2 teachers on unauthorized leave have been received in the entire Surat. The Education Department is committed to taking strict action against these teachers who misused the exemption given to them and circumvented the law. Doing business or other business activities along with government duties is a serious violation of the future of children. Which has a bad impact on the education and future of children. Teachers who sacrifice the future of children for their own selfish interests cannot be forgiven. He added that instructions have been given to take disciplinary action against these teachers and to take back any leave pay they have received.