Mumbai: School withholds SSC mark sheet, certificates over non-payment of fees

A 17yearold who cleared the SSC board examination in 2021 is not able to pursue higher education or get a job as her school has withheld her mark sheet and passing and leaving certificates for not paying fees amounting to Rs 30000The trustee of Madhyamik School in Kannamwar Nagar Vikhrolimdashrun by Manohar Kotwal Trustmdashhas claimed the school is totally dependent on fees and that the complainant had not approached them for two yearsAfter running from pillar to post to obtain the required documents the student Kashish Lakdawala and her mother Deepali decided to file a complaint against the school and approached social worker Dheeraj Kamble for helpKashish said ldquoDue to the financial crisis my fees were pending and the situation worsened as the pandemic hit My parents didnrsquot have a job In 2021 my mother suffered a stroke which caused paralysis and she was on bed rest As she recovered I lost my father last year Itrsquos been a very tough time We requested the school to give me my marksheet so I can take up a parttime job and also apply for admission to junior college but in vainrdquoKashish along with Nitin Dalvi of the Maharashtra State Student Parent Teacher Federation filed a complaint with the education inspector of the north zone and the Maharashtra State Commission for Protection of Child Rights on Thursday ldquoIn April this year I was left with no option and did not know what to do So we went to the local corporator and the trustee agreed to give us photocopies of the marksheet and leaving certificate However we couldnrsquot get admissions on the basis of photocopiesrdquo said DeepaliShe added ldquoI managed to get a job in a local cake shop near our residence With this I managed to earn some moneyrdquoSarita Kanvinde the trustee of the school said ldquoThe girl had not come to us for two years She was not the only one whose mark sheet was withheld Others came paid part of their fees and we gave them their mark sheets There were students who requested that they pay R1000 We still gave them their mark sheets and leaving certificates We waived the fees of those who had financial issues Her mother did approach us in April through the local corporator We issued photocopies of the documents I told them to inform us once she seeks admission but she didnrsquot call back The address they have given us is different from her actual one hence we could not contact the girlrdquoAccording to Kanvinde the school has its limitations ldquoWe are a fully unaided school and do not get any grant from the government We rely fully on the fees that we collect from students If we do not get fees how will we pay teachers and deal with expendituresThis is not the first time that the school has punished students over nonpayment of fees The school was in the news seven years ago for making students sit on the floor over the nonpayment of fees In January this year many students from Std V to Std X at the school were barred from taking internal exams This led to chaos on the campus after parents arrived and argued with the school staff A video of the confrontation went viral The exam was cancelled laterDalvi alleged that the arbitrariness of private schools is increasing due to the fact that education department officials are supporting the school administration by not acting against them despite complaints ldquoConcrete action should be taken against such schools This is the third such incident that came to light this year In July this year a similar incident was reported where a Std X student was denied her SSC mark sheet by her school in Bhandup in 2021 There has been no action yetrdquo Dalvi saidldquoThe education department should develop a system to ensure that passed students get results hall tickets and school leaving certificates and also investigate how many schools in Maharashtra are still doing thisrdquo Dalvi demandedRs 30kAmount in pending fees