A Samajwadi Party member has been booked by the Uttar Pradesh police for allegedly operating an unauthorised school in Saharanpur, where children were taught “politicised” alphabets, The Times of India reported on Monday.

The first information report, registered at the Dehat Kotwali police station, was based on a complaint filed by a resident identified as Maan Singh, who accused Farhan Alam Gada of politicising education and misleading children.

He alleged that the children were being taught phrases like “A for Akhilesh”, “B for Babasaheb”, “D for Dimple” and “M for Mulayam Singh Yadav”, referring to Samajwadi Party leaders and BR Ambedkar. Singh alleged that this sparked public outrage and hurt public sentiment, The Times of India reported.

The incident came to light after a video, reportedly filmed at Gada’s residence in Ramnagar village, was widely shared on social media, PTI reported. In the footage, uniformed children were seen participating in the lesson.

Gada had launched the first such school, called “PDA Pathshala” after the Samajwadi Party’s outreach to Pichhda (backward), Dalit and Alpsankhyak (minority) communities, India Today reported.

These community-run schools aim to provide free education to underprivileged children while also introducing them to the party’s core ideology.

He has previously said that the schools were not just for teaching the alphabet but also to educate children about the “great men of Samajwadi ideology”.

“Just as convent schools have their own curriculum, our PDA Pathshala introduces children to socialist ideology,” The Times of India quoted him as saying.

Gada has been charged under Section 353(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for promoting enmity between groups, and under provisions of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Prevention of Atrocities Act.

Samajwadi chief Akhilesh Yadav accused the Bharatiya Janata-led state government of being anti-education.

“Even the British didn't file an FIR for studying,” he said in a post on X. “The anti-education face of BJP has now been exposed to the public. Now BJP will be gone forever.”

In a related case, another leader from the Samajwadi Party, Rachna Singh Gautam, was booked for allegedly holding another unauthorised “PDA Pathshala” outside a government school in Shahampur Garhi village in Kanpur, Hindustan Times reported.

The complaint accused her of politicising children, misusing school premises and spreading misinformation.

The Samajwadi Party launched “PDA Pathshalas” in protest against the state government’s now-rolled back move to merge primary schools.

The merger policy, aimed at consolidating schools with fewer than 50 students, had faced backlash for potentially increasing dropout rates, especially among children from poor, rural and marginalised communities, due to greater travel distances and reduced local access to education.

The Uttar Pradesh government has defended the policy, saying it is in line with the 2020 National Education Policy and aims to enhance education quality, while optimising the use of resources.