Seven students of classes 9 and 10 in Bengaluru received transfer certificates (TCs) on Thursday due to an escalating dispute between parents and the Daffodils English School Association. This is because it is believed that the students’ tuition was not paid, according to the TCs.
Since February, parents have been unable to enrol their children in the school for the academic year 2023–24 due to infractions like the lack of government clearance for the fee structure, which is required by the Karnataka Education Act.
The dispute started in 2018, but the school’s response came after some parents allegedly skipped four years’ worth of payments since the price structure lacked official approval. Since February, about 10 students have been detained at the entrance.
The parents complained of rights abuses and retaliation for raising concerns to the Karnataka State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (KSCPCR).
As warnings to pay fees went unheeded, the school made the decision to issue TCs to the seven students, citing that authorities had rejected the parents’ claims. “The school has made a definitive decision to award TC to the children of these 7 chronic defaulters and has done so with the support and strong advice of the school Parents Teachers Association. Due to the parents’ shown irresponsibility and failure to fulfil their responsibility for their children’s education, we were forced to make this stern decision. These parents are denying the kids’ right to an education by doing this.
Issues like unqualified teachers, nepotism in hiring, capitation fees, and a lack of fee transparency have been brought up by parents. However, according to the school, 18 of the 25 protesting parents’ issues have been handled by paying fees or accepting TCs without payment.
Balagopal Shenoi, a parent whose Class 7 student is excluded, wrote to the Commissioner of Public Instruction requesting enforcement of the rules.
In his letter dated July 31, he emphasised that the education authorities had flagged the infractions committed by the school but have yet to issue any written instructions. The letter stated that “instead of upholding the law, the deputy director of public instruction (North) is brokering compromise agreements with parents by pressuring us to withdraw the complaint and give in to the unlawful demands of the school.”
Parents now want students reinstated, the school’s NOC withdrawn, and documents like original marks cards and migration certificates released.
The school in a press statement said, “A few parents including Mr. Balagopala Shenoi, Mr. John Jairaj and Mr. Chandrashekar Reddy are desperate to tarnish the school’s image. Mr. Balagopala Shenoi and Mr. John Jairaj have got their elder children to complete schooling with us without paying a single rupee towards the school fees for three complete years. Their children are in college now. They intend to repeat the same with their younger children’s education too.” The school also added that, “Ours is a private unaided school. Our financial sustenance is based on the fees we collect. According to the government order passed on 18th May 2018, which came into effect from the academic year 2019-2020, we have been collecting fees within the permitted range. In fact, our fee structure is much lesser and much more reasonable in comparison with the other schools of similar standards as us. This fact is available to the public to verify.”