Entertainment
British Hindu boy's father sues former school over ban on wearing tilak-chandlo
Representational Image LONDON: The father of a nine-year-old British Indian Hindu boy is suing his son’s former primary school in the high court, King’s Bench Division, for unlawful religious discrimination and harassment for not allowing him to wear a tilak-chandlo at school, a manifestation of his Hindu Swaminarayan faith.The father, funded by UK Hindu network Action for Harmony, as his son’s “litigation friend”, is seeking £25,000 in damages from the governing body of Vicar’s Green primary school in Alperton, a state school in Ealing borough, also claiming breach of public sector equality duty and interference with the boy’s Article 9 (freedom of religion) and Article 14 (prohibiting discrimination) ECHR rights.In the court papers, which TOI has seen, the father alleges that in Nov 2025 the child, then eight, was questioned about his tilak-chandlo by staff and told it was not permitted.His parents wrote to the school saying their son had worn it for four years and there was nothing in the school’s uniform policy prohibiting it. On Dec 12 the boy was removed from the school council, where he was a representative of his class. Next the school issued a new uniform policy prohibiting religious symbols. In Jan 2026 the parents withdrew their child from the school.The school, in its defence, disputes the whole claim, denying it unlawfully discriminated against the boy. “The prohibition on wearing the tilak-chandlo on the claimant’s forehead did not prevent him from practising Hinduism,” the school claims, adding “there were legitimate concerns that acceding to the claimant’s wearing of the tilak-chandlo… might have significant adverse consequences, including a breakdown in pupil cohesiveness”.The school questions whether the boy follows the Swaminarayan Hindu faith, “denies that it is obligatory to daily wear the mark on the middle of the forehead”, and alleges staff suggested the boy wear the symbol “on parts of his body that are covered”, which his parents rejected.Ambrish Limbachia, director of Ashray Law, representing the boy through his father, said: “This case raises important questions about religious freedom and equality in British education.”
Times of India·4 hours ago·2 min read
Entertainment
IISc distinguished alumnus/alumna awards for 2026 announced
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Published - November 06, 2026 09:10 pm IST - Bengaluru
A view of the Indian Institute of Science campus.
The Indian Institute of Science (IISc) has announced that eight scientists and engineers have been selected for its distinguished alumnus/alumna awards and young alumnus/alumna medals for 2026.
It said the awards recognise alumni who have made exceptional contributions to their professions, society and the institute.
The nominations were assessed by a committee headed by IISc director Govindan Rangarajan.
“The distinguished alumnus/alumna awards and young alumnus/alumna medals are an opportunity to celebrate their journeys and achievements, and to recognise the many ways in which they continue to inspire our community,” Prof. Rangarajan said.
This year’s distinguished alumnus/alumna award recipients are B.S. Manjunath, Dipakar Das Sarma, Jagannath Nayak, Maruthi R. Akella and Rajat Moona.
Mr. Manjunath is a globally recognised computer scientist and academic leader, and the Frank Koenig Distinguished Chair in Signals and Systems and Distinguished Professor at the University of California, Santa Barbara, U.S.
Mr. Sarma is an internationally renowned condensed matter physicist and materials chemist, currently the ANRF National Science Chair and Emeritus Professor at the Solid State and Structural Chemistry Unit, IISc.
Mr. Nayak is a distinguished defence scientist and Director-General of Missiles and Strategic Systems at DRDO.
Mr. Akella is a globally renowned aerospace scientist and control systems engineer, who currently holds the Cockrell Family Chair in Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin, U.S.
Mr. Moona is an internationally renowned computer scientist and technologist, and Director of IIT Gandhinagar.
The young alumnus/alumna Mmedals, given to researchers under the age of 40, will be conferred on Abhishek Sinha, Geethu Joseph and Himanshu Joshi.
Mr. Sinha is a leading theoretical computer scientist, currently a Reader at the School of Technology and Computer Science, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai.
Ms. Joseph is an internationally recognised researcher in sparse control, intelligent sensing and autonomous systems, and a tenured Assistant Professor at Delft University of Technology, the Netherlands.
Mr. Joshi is an internationally recognised researcher in computational biophysics, multiscale molecular simulations, DNA nanotechnology, and an Assistant Professor of Biotechnology at IIT Hyderabad.
The awardees will be honoured at a ceremony to be held on December 19, at the J.N. Tata Auditorium, IISc.
Published - November 06, 2026 09:10 pm IST
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The Hindu·8 hours ago·3 min read
