Nagpur school bars Class student from exam over unpaid fees; headmaster, teacher booked

Nagpur: A minor girl was stopped from taking an examination at a school in Koradi because her school fees had not been paid. The girl, who had gone to appear for her Hindi paper, was made to sit in the library instead of the examination hall. The humiliating incident has had a deep effect on her mental state. Koradi police have registered a case against the school's headmaster and the class teacher.

The case concerns Narayan Vidyalaya at Bokhara in Koradi. The complainant's nine-year-old daughter studies at the school. It is alleged that the Hindi examination was held at the school on September 28. The girl's father had not been able to pay the school fees on time, for financial or other reasons. Over this, the headmaster and the class teacher stopped the girl from sitting the examination.

While the other students wrote the paper, the girl was kept in the library, away from the examination hall. Watching her classmates take the examination, she felt humiliated and was left mentally hurt by the incident. Seeing his daughter's condition, her father lodged a complaint at Koradi police station. He also complained to the education department.

Based on the education department's report, Koradi police have booked the headmaster and the class teacher under the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act and the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act.

Parents angry over punishing children for fees

The incident has caused strong resentment among parents against the school administration. Parents say many educational institutions mentally harass children when fee payment is delayed. They say a fee dispute should be between parents and school management, and ask how far it is justified to punish innocent children for it. Such action, they say, can seriously affect children's self-esteem and mental health.