Indian School Under Fire for Using Children to Portray Muslims as Terrorists and Thieves
Two organisations have filed police complaints over the performance, which depicted people in Arab attire as thieves and terrorists; the school management says it has initiated an inquiry.
By Abdullahi Yusuf
A school performance in India’s southern Kerala state has sparked outrage over Islamophobia after children performed a song portraying people dressed in Arab attire as thieves and terrorists, raising concerns about the spread of anti-Muslim prejudice through educational institutions.
The controversial performance was presented by students of St. Mary’s School in Allapra, Perumbavoor, during a Central Board of Secondary Education arts festival held at Mahilalayam School in Aluva.
The song associated Arab clothing with criminality and terrorism, depicting people wearing such attire as individuals entering train coaches to frighten passengers and planting bombs on railway tracks.
“Thieves and terrorists, dressed in Arab attire, enter the coaches and we are afraid. Oh no, terrorists place bombs on the tracks and flee,” the lyrics stated.
The portrayal drew criticism for reinforcing Islamophobic stereotypes that associate Muslim identities and traditional Arab clothing with violence and terrorism.
According to complaints filed with police, the performance promoted religious prejudice among children and risked normalizing hostility toward Muslims in educational and cultural spaces.
The Fraternity Movement’s Ernakulam district committee filed a complaint at Perumbavoor police station Tuesday, demanding an investigation into the performance and action against those responsible.
Ashiq Panayikkulam, the organization’s district general secretary, submitted the complaint, describing the use of children to promote racial and religious prejudice as a serious concern.
The organization argued that schools should promote fraternity, tolerance and mutual respect rather than expose children to messages that stigmatize religious communities.
It warned that cultural programs involving students were increasingly becoming platforms for spreading Islamophobia and communal divisions.
The Social Democratic Party of India also approached police, seeking criminal action against the school authorities, festival organizers and those responsible for preparing the song.
Shameer M.H., president of the party’s Perumbavoor constituency committee, submitted a separate complaint accusing those involved of portraying a particular religious community as criminals and terrorists.
The organization demanded action under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, India’s criminal code, and the Juvenile Justice Act.
The controversy has raised broader questions about how anti-Muslim stereotypes can be reproduced through school activities, particularly when children are encouraged to perform material linking recognizable cultural or religious identities with terrorism.
Analysts argue that such portrayals can shape attitudes toward religious minorities from an early age, undermining the responsibility of educational institutions to foster inclusion and respect.
The complaints have placed renewed attention on Islamophobia in India’s educational spaces, where the normalization of anti-Muslim stereotypes remains a concern for minority rights advocates.
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