Asked to leave for being 'autistic', student taken back by Mumbai school

The school had earlier asked him to leave as he was autistic, his parents had then approached the state child rights commission and the BMC education department

Four days after mid-day wrote about a six-year-old child being asked to leave a south Mumbai school for being autistic, the school finally assured parents that no such action will be taken. On Monday, parents of the student met a representative of Cumballa Hill High School and were assured that their son will continue with the school.

Finally on Monday, the school assured the parents that Vinayak will study with his other classmates in the same school. File Pic

“I was worried that they will make a hue and cry and insist on sending a counsellor along with our son to school, but we were greeted by his class teacher who apologised for the confusion and assured us that our son will face no problem henceforth,” said B Jigalmadi, father of the child.

Worried about the school’s behaviour towards their son, the parents had also filed a complaint with the BMC education department, as well as with the Maharashtra State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (MSCPCR). “We might take back our complaints,” he added.

Last week on Friday, the school had handed over a document to parents, asking them to provide some test results. The boy’s parents had already stated that tests had been conducted at Nair Hospital’s LD Testing Centre and the report had clearly stated that the student has mild autism and was fit to study at a regular school.

“We were worried that they will force us to move him into another school but thankfully, they are now considering our problem,” added Jigalmadi. mid-day had first written about this issue on August 7, after the school refused to let Vinayak Jigalmadi enter the school premises and labelled him a “slow learner”.

Vinayak had already been made to repeat his academic year in Junior KG and barely two months into the academic year, the school complained that the child should be sent to an school for special children.

His parents had also submitted reports stating that Vinayak was fit to study in a regular school, but the school management was adamant on their decision. Finally on Monday, the management assured parents that Vinayak will study with his other classmates in the same school.

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