Student forced to sit on floor for not paying school tuition fees in Kerala

NEW DELHI: A school student was forced to write a term examination by sitting on the floor at a private school in Kerala for not remitting monthly fees, his family claimed on Friday. The Class 7 student, the family said, suffered harassment by the principal at the school, located in Vellayambalam, in the heart of Thiruvananthapuram.

The school management agreed with the family's allegation as it admitted that the principal was wrong in making the boy sit on the floor for delay in paying tuition fees. According to the boy's family, the principal, who walked into the examination hall during the test, asked those students who were yet to remit the fees to stand up.

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"When sir (principal) told me I didn't remit the fees, I requested him to ask my father. But he was not ready to listen to me. He asked me to come out and sit on the floor," the boy told a news channel. As he felt insulted in front of his friends, the student was reluctant to go to school the following day to take the test. His father alleged that he was also humiliated by the principal when he called him to enquire about the harassment incident.

"When I called him over the phone, the principal mocked me and told me that my son was made to sit on a good floor," he said. Meanwhile, the school management admitted that the incident was a mistake on the part of the principal. "It was a mistake on the part of the principal. We will talk to the student's father personally and try to solve the issue," Prasad, the administrator of the school, said.

He also indicated about taking action against the principal for harassing the student. However, the student's father said he was not ready for any settlement and would transfer the boy to another school. He also said no other child should go through similar harassment anymore. The principal was unavailable for comment regarding the issue.