London school accused of religious discrimination after pupil challenged over tilak
London (PTI): A highly rated primary school in north-west London has been accused of religious discrimination after a diaspora advocacy group claimed an eight-year-old pupil was challenged for wearing a tilak on his forehead.
INSIGHT UK claimed in a statement on Monday that the child and his family suffered “significant distress” over the issue at Vicar’s Green Primary School in Wembley, leaving Hindu parents with no option but to remove at least four pupils from the school.
However, the school denied any form of discrimination at its "diverse and inclusive” institution, which has pupils from more than 50 language backgrounds, including a significant number of Hindus.
“The Tilak-Chandlo is not a cosmetic or cultural accessory, it is an integral religious observance for many Hindus,” said an INSIGHT UK spokesperson.
“Preventing a child from practising their faith, or making them feel ashamed or intimidated for doing so, is wholly unacceptable in a modern, multicultural Britain.
“For over 1 billion Hindus worldwide, sacred markings such as the Tilak-Chandlo, Bindi, Tikka, Tripundra etc are integral expressions of faith. To trivialise or mislabel such practices in an educational setting reflects a troubling lack of religious literacy,” the spokesperson said.
Among the reports collated by the group, the school headteacher and governors are said to have displayed a lack of “cultural and religious sensitivity” during attempts at dialogue.
“This was not a good-faith dialogue — it was an imbalance of power, where Hindu religious practices were scrutinised, minimised, and ultimately rejected,” INSIGHT UK claimed.
It has called on the school to review its policies and staff training to ensure compliance with equality and safeguarding laws.
Ealing Council, the local authority in charge of the school rated “outstanding” by the independent Office for Standards in Education (OFSTED), responded to PTI’s inquiry with a statement from a spokesperson for Vicar’s Green Primary School.
“Our longstanding school policy asks pupils not to wear visible skin markings including religious ones. We met with the parents of a pupil who was wearing a Tilak-Chandlo on their forehead to discuss the matter sensitively and sought to understand the reason for it," the school spokesperson stated.
“We fully recognised the family’s religious beliefs and, in a spirit of conciliation, we offered a reasonable compromise by making an exception to our policy so the symbol could be worn on a less prominent part of the body. This was, unfortunately, rejected by the pupil’s parents," the spokesperson said.
The school went on to reference its recent OFSTED inspections as recognising its inclusive environment where children "thrive".
The spokesperson added: “The school’s governing body also thoroughly reviewed the case and wrote to the parents explaining the school's decision in detail and also offered the reasonable adjustments the school had offered, as well as special religious occasions. Unfortunately, the parents did not accept either of these adjustments.
“We have always approached these discussions respectfully, sensitively and thoroughly, which has taken up a considerable amount of time and stress for the school, and its community. As a school, our priority is always the wellbeing of all our children.”
Vicar’s Green Primary School stressed that it values and respects the diverse cultural and religious backgrounds in its community, with its policy designed to “promote cohesion, fairness, equality and a shared sense of belonging while preventing division or disruption within the school community”.
The official UK government classification describes it as a mixed (co-ed) "community school", or a secular state school, that caters to pupils aged between three and eleven.
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Epstein files allege email claims about Bill Gates seeking antibiotics; foundation denies charges
Washington DC: fresh set of documents released as part of the Jeffrey Epstein files has triggered renewed attention after screenshots of alleged self-emails attributed to Epstein made claims involving Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates.
The screenshots, circulating online and reported by several outlets, purport to show Epstein writing to himself in July 2013, alleging that Gates had contracted a sexually transmitted disease during encounters with women described as “Russian girls” and had asked Epstein to arrange antibiotics to be given discreetly to his then wife, Melinda Gates. The documents also contain claims of personal disputes and alleged requests that Epstein delete certain emails.
The authenticity of the screenshots has not been independently verified. The allegations contained in them remain unsubstantiated and are disputed by context and prior public statements from Gates. There is no confirmation from official records that the claims are factual.
According to reports, the screenshots are part of a larger tranche of documents released by the United States Department of Justice, comprising hundreds of thousands of pages related to Epstein. Epstein, a convicted sex offender, died in a New York jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges.
The alleged email text includes Epstein expressing anger over Gates distancing himself from their relationship and claiming involvement in matters he described as morally or ethically inappropriate. The documents also reference marital tensions between Bill and Melinda Gates, though no independent evidence is provided to support the claims.
Bill Gates has previously acknowledged meeting Epstein and has said he regretted the association, while repeatedly denying any involvement in illegal or unethical activities. His philanthropic foundation has issued a strong denial in response to the latest claims, calling the allegations absurd and completely false.
Bill and Melinda Gates were married from 1994 until their divorce in 2021. Melinda Gates has publicly stated that Gates’s extramarital relationships and his association with Epstein were among the factors that led to the end of their marriage, without detailing specific allegations.
As with earlier Epstein-related disclosures, legal experts and media analysts have urged caution, noting that the presence of a name in released documents does not establish wrongdoing and that many claims in the material remain unproven.
