Denied school admission, father of 3 Pak refugee kids seek CM’S help

They were allowed to attend classes from July 8 to September 14, and then they were unceremoniously removed from the school on the grounds of being overaged. GULSHER, in letter to Delhi CM

NEWDELHI: Three Pakistani refugee siblings, residing in south Delhi’s Bhatti Mines area, alleged that a government school in the locality denied them admission to class 9 on the grounds that they were “overaged” for the class. Their father on Monday wrote to chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, seeking his intervention.

In a letter, sent through All India Parents Association (AIPA), Gulsher said his daughters Sanjini Bai (16) and Mona Kumari (18) and son Ravi Kumar (17) were admitted by the school to class 9 in July.

“They were allowed to attend classes from July 8 to September 14, and then they were unceremoniously removed from the school on the grounds of being overaged. They are at home now and is under tremendous mental agony,” the letter said.

Gulsher said his family had moved to Delhi from the Sindh province of Pakistan in May this year. “My children could not attend school regularly due to the uncomfortable situation back home. But the three of them had completed class 8 last year and we also have transfer certificates from their school in Sukkur city of Sindh,” he said. He had attached their transfer certificates and mark sheets with the letter.

The family had come to Delhi in May on a tourist visa that will expire in December. “We have applied for an extension. A lot of our relatives have been living here for years after getting an extension from the government. We are also not going back,” Gulsher said.

Ashok Agarwal of the AIPA said a similar case had come to fore in 2016 when a Pakistani refugee girl was denied admission by the same school for not having all documents. “The girl was given admission after the then external affair minister had intervened. The government should provide admission to these children by making some exceptions. We should not hamper their right to education,” he said.

Gulsher, who used to work as a truck driver in Pakistan, requested Kejriwal to intervene immediately.

“My children are being harassed. I do not have a job as yet to send them to a private school. I am hoping that the chief minister will help us,” he said.

The chief minister’s office said the complaint was forwarded to the directorate of education (DOE).

An official from the DOE said, “The Delhi government gives admission on the age-appropriate criteria. We will see what can be done in this matter and contact the family soon.”