Not only Rabea, every school punishes students for non-payment of fees

Rabea Girls’ Public School in Delhi has been in the eye of the storm for a fortnight now. In this school, run by the Hamdard Group, some children who could not pay their fee were made to sit in the basement of the school. The episode gained publicity and the school management was condemned for the insensitive act. Subsequently, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal set-up an enquiry into the matter and other political parties too condemned the school.

Unfortunately, not only Rabia Girls’, but several private schools are following the same policy on this issue and children are reprimanded for the non-payment of fees. Many schools of repute are also among them. Till now, high fees, expensive books and uniforms and huge commission for admissions were the issues that were discussed with regard to private schools.

But inhuman treatment of children over non-payment of fees was unheard of. Among them are making children stand out of the class, humiliating them in front of their peers, sending them back home in the middle of school hours, punishing them in the class, asking them to stand up during assembly, forcing them to get down from the school bus and stopping them at school after school hours are some of the methods practised by schools to extort fees from the parents.

Ghaziabad resident Vijay Sharma recounts his experience with a reputed school of Ghaziabad. “Last year, this school sent about 40 students back home with their transfer certificates. The school argued that it did so because the students’ fees were not paid on time. My children also studied in the same school. The school did so in mid session so as to intimidate other parents and the school could flourish. But after this, the parents went to the Ghaziabad DM to plead their case and the school was forced to take back the children.”

Reyan Ali, who studies in class 11 in Muzaffarnagar, said, “One day, the manager of the school came to the class and asked those students who have not deposited the fees to stand up. I also stood up. He started scolding us in front of the entire class. His language was very insulting.”

“After such humiliation, how could I study in the school with the same children who were present there when I was being insulted? So, I left the school,” added Reyan.

Why, after all, are the parents not able to pay the fees on time?

43-year-old Imran Ahmad says, “The fees is too high and the school keeps asking for other expenses. The Rabea school of Old Delhi, where the incident of keeping the children in the basement occurred charges ₹3,000 for kindergartners. Now, tell me, how can a person, who earns ₹12,000 a month and has three children run his household?”

According to Zahid Khan, an employee of a reputed school in Saharanpur, all expenses of the school depends on the fees collected by the school and parents too are not really prompt in depositing the fees. Therefore, just to wake up the parents, these methods are followed sometimes.”

One parent of a child studying in this school says that the condition is the same in all the schools of Meerut. Now schools have turned into shops. If you want you buy the product otherwise don’t pay. They have no morality or ethics left now.

It is important to note here that the government has very strict rules for granting recognition to a school. For example, no recognised school in Uttar Pradesh can charge a fee more than ₹60. But some schools recognised by the Uttar Pradesh government charge thousands of rupees as fees in the name of CBSE. In the same manner, some schools create an impression that they are run by Christian Missionaries but in fact they are not. This is a clear-cut case of fraud.

Kaustubh Kumar Singh, a former education officer in Muzaffarnagar, had won appreciation by admitting his daughter in a government school. He says, “When the parents understand that private schools are blackmailing them emotionally, then they should admit their children to a government school. These schools are not that expensive and their teachers are far more capable and knowledgeable.”

But Sanjay Jatav has something else to say, “The condition of government schools is pathetic. Children here have to sweep the floor. Teachers are not interested in teaching. Fed up with all this, the parents are compelled to send their children to private schools.”

At some places, cases have been filed against the school management for mistreating the children and an enquiry is set up for almost every such school. Nevertheless, nothing changes.

(Translated into English by Pragati Saxena).