Non-payment of fee: G D Goenka school principal booked for torturing students

GHAZIABAD: The Ghaziabad police, on Sunday, booked the principal and admin in-charge of G D Goenka school in Ghaziabad for allegedly torturing and mentally harassing two sibling students over non-payment of annual fee charges. The girls, a class sixth and a class 12th student, were confined by the principal within the school premises and were not allowed to attend the classes for the day.

Police said that the FIR has been registered against Vandana Medha and admin incharge Vibha of GD Goenka School at Rajnagar Extension under IPC sections 342 (Punishment for wrongful confinement) and section 75 of Juvenile Justice (JJ) act.

According to victim's mother, on August 20, when both her daughters had gone to the school, the school principal forcefully confined them and detained both the girls in her office and didn't allow them to attend the classes. Moreover they were also not allowed to go back home from school van and were kept inside a dark room in the school for more than nine hours before her mother reached school.

She further stated that the annual charges were not paid as the school administration failed to provide the fee structure even after several requests were made and taking that annual charge to be void, we did not pay. More over the district administration also made it clear that the schools cannot take any extra money from parents in the name of annual charges and other.

The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) on August 21 had also asked the police to initiate the investigation and file its report within 7 working days.

Police officials said that they have registered a case and investigation is underway.

Meanwhile, the President of All School's Parent's Association (ASPA), Shivani singh said that it is NCPCR whose involvement had pressurized the police to take action. She further alleged that the police have delayed the investigation. However, she said that if proper investigations are followed in the case, it will set an example for the schools that resort to such kinds of practices to procure illegal fees from parents.

The girls, a class sixth and a class 12th student, were confined by the principal inside a dark room in the school for more than nine hours and were not allowed to attend the classes for the day