Parents not sure as to when the school will reopen
The academic future of around 3,500 students of the school in Marathahalli where a six-year-old girl was raped continues to hang in the balance as the management and parents have not arrived at a consensus on when the school will reopen.
Another round of talks between school officials and parents that was scheduled for Wednesday did not take place because none from the management came turned up.
A parent said members of the core committee of parents refused to negotiate with the principal and other staff. “The management is accountable to us and we will have a meeting only if representatives of the management are present at the venue.”
The meeting, scheduled at 11 a.m., was postponed to 2 p.m. after parents were told that members of the management would arrive for talks.
S.M. Ramesh, Block Education Officer, Bangalore South 4, said the meeting was postponed to Thursday morning as none from the school’s management turned up. He said that the management had promised that they would be present at the meeting on Thursday.
Parents are not sure as to when the school would reopen. A parent said, “We have received no communication from the school management. We want a letter from the school explaining the events and want stern punishment for those involved in the crime as well as those who tried to cover it up. The management owes an explanation to us.”
While some parents have been focusing on ensuring that the school is safe before their children return to institution, some others want to pull out their children from the school.
A parent whose son studies in Class 3 said, “I have paid Rs. 85,000 for this academic year. I want the school to refund the fee because I want to send my child to another school.” Officials in the Education Department, however, said efforts were on to get the school reopened on Monday.
(The Hindu)
