Mumbai: Parents of around 20 students of the St. Anthony Girls’ High School in Chembur complained to the education department that their daughters were not allowed to attend classes since they had applied mehndi on their hands. The school responded that it had merely asked the students to wait in the hall since they had failed to follow a few school discipline rules.
In their letter to the education department, parents called the school’s actions discriminatory and unfair, prompting the department to ask schools for an explanation and initiate an inquiry into the matter.
The school’s written response stated that no student had been treated unfairly. The school maintained that some students were asked to wait in the hall temporarily because they did not follow certain school rules. These included not bringing leave notes, forgetting their ID cards, not wearing the complete uniform, or not submitting medical certificates after being ill. Among the students waiting in the hall, were also a few who had mehndi on their hands, the school added.
The school explained that once parents submitted the necessary documents–ID cards, leave notes, and medical certificates–the students were sent back to their classrooms. During the wait, teachers and staff attended to the students in the hall, the school added.
Parents, however, continued to allege that their children were unfairly stopped from attending class because of the mehndi. Some parents claimed that their daughters were embarrassed and made to wait outside classrooms for a long time. They have demanded strict action against the school administration.
Karn Doonbale, general secretary of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), who visited the school after receiving complaints from parents, said, “I am an eyewitness to the incident. Around 20 students were stopped by the school authorities, and only after the intervention of an education officer did the school provide a written explanation.”
The Education Department Officials said that a detailed report would be submitted after reviewing all statements and documents.