Thane: Commission asks school to clarify withholding class X result over fee dispute

Thane: The Maharashtra State Commission for Protection of Child Rights asked a city-based CBSE-affiliated school to clarify its stance after parents of a student accused the school management of illegally withholding his Class X result for the last 2 years and demanding that the pending tuition fees be cleared first.The student apparently scored fewer marks in the Class IX finals, and his parents allegedly failed to pay his school fees for the last few years. The parents alleged that the management, which probably waited to expel him on these grounds, took his poor academic performance as an opportunity and convinced his parents to let him appear for his Class X exams through the National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS), New Delhi, in 2023 instead.
Even after clearing the NIOS exam, the parents approached the school but were in for a rude shock, as the management allegedly refused to release his academic documents and demanded that the dues be cleared first. As the boy was losing out on crucial years, the parents sought help from the Commission, which issued a notice to the school demanding an explanation."Due to the fee dispute, the school deliberately failed him in Class IX, forcing him to appear for the Class X examination through the NIOS. Now they are even delaying giving his results to him, which resulted in him losing 2 crucial years, and this is unfair," said Nitin Dalvi, a Mumbai-based activist who took up the case on behalf of the parents.Acting on the complaint, the Commission issued a notice to the school last year and also directed the Education Officer of Thane district to take appropriate action. However, no concrete action was taken, following which Dalvi again approached the Commission, which issued a fresh notice to the school on Feb 2 and instructed the Education Officer, Thane, to submit a report within 7 days.When contacted, the school principal confirmed the result was not shared as the parents refused to come to the school to personally collect the result. "It is true that the parents did not clear school fees for the last few years, and we also requested them to pay it in instalments, but they refused to relent. We received the notice and responded to the Commission accordingly, clarifying our stand. We did not hold back his result and instead repeatedly asked the parents to collect the results personally, but they insist on us sending the crucial document through post, which is not possible," the school clarified.Devidas Mahajan, district education officer, said he would look into the matter and take adequate action.Meanwhile, Dalvi sought action against the officials for failing to take timely action against the school.