Kayamkulam: Three students from a school were dismissed by the school management after their parents requested a reduction in tuition fees at the Kerala High Court in 2020. Apparently, two students slated to start class 9 and another scheduled to start his 8th standard classes, were expelled by school officials at Janasakthi Public School in Kayamkulam, Alappuzha. Parents of the students claim that the school did not even notify them of the decision in advance.
In their quest for justice, the families are now desperately trying to ramp up support to prevent their children from losing an academic year. It was only on June 2, the first day of the academic year, when the online classes began, that students and parents discovered the school management’s move. ‘We hadn’t received any information about the school reopening or book distribution. It was when my daughter’s friends called and inquired as to why she was absent in online classes that we came to know that classes had started. Following this, when I contacted the school Principal, he said that management has decided to terminate my child and two others,’ says Prathapan, father of Jewel Prathap, a native of Kayamkulam. The school management had held a grudge against the parents for filing a complaint against the school in the High Court the previous year requesting a reduction in tuition fee.
According to the explanation letter sent by the school principal to one of the parents on June 3, the school took the decision due to the ‘fake propaganda’ by these parents, which resulted in many students not paying their fees. Additionally, one of the parents is alleged to have made an offensive comment to a teacher in the letter. A case has been registered against the parent. ‘The three parents—Vinod Kumar, Dileep Kumar, and Prathapan, tried to shut down the school by demeaning its name and tried to financially destroy the school. The school management committee has decided not to allow their children to study in this school,’ it said.
Parents of CBSE schools across the state sought reductions in fees during the COVID-19, which began in February 2021, and the Kerala High Court dismissed the petitions. The parents of these three children filed a lawsuit against Janasakthi Public School. The parents claim that the school management has taken action against them because they have damaged the school’s reputation.
‘Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, most of the parents had been in a terrible situation, with many losing jobs, and with severe financial constraints. So, about 180 parents in the school gave a joint petition to the administration asking to forgo the one-time payable admission fee, which will amount to Rs 15,000. These fees include charges of electricity, lab fees, etc. Since it was an online class, we felt our demand was justified. But the school authorities threatened to dismiss our children if we did not pay the fees, it was then that we moved to the High Court. Since there were similar petitions, they were considered together and we paid the fee as per court ruling,’ says Prathapan. He claimed, however, that the school management held a grudge against the three parents.
‘Before this academic year started, some parents had been saying that the school might take such an action against our children. But I hadn’t believed it. After we came to know classes started, I wrote a letter to the Principal seeking explanation on why my son was not allowed to attend the class. And it was then, in the explanation letter, the school informed that my son is ousted along with two others,’ said D Vinod, father of Devan V.
Read more: ‘From 2 crores to 18 crores in 10 minutes’: Controversy erupts over Ram temple land purchase
As a result of this turn of events, their parents state that their kids are still in shock. ‘We moved the court as representatives of all other parents. My child is emotionally broken. When his friends call, speaking about the online class and school, tears trickle down his eyes. We can’t stand watching this, what an injustice this is,’ says Vinod. In addition, the parents claim that the school is scaring others by adopting this policy. ‘They are trying to silence us, but we will not be. It is the matter of our children’s education,’ Vinod says. Additionally, Prathapan said the parents would take the school management to court over this blatant violation of the right to study for children. A complaint has been filed with the ministry of general education and the state commission for the protection of children’s rights.
Post Your Comments