<p>The Cathedral Composite PU College and High School in Bengaluru was on Tuesday hit by allegations that its principal was set for an undue extension in office.</p>.<p>Christy Glory Shanthi, it was alleged, was due for retirement this year but was getting another year at work on the basis of ‘tampered’ birth records.</p>.<p>Sources close to the principal traced the allegation to what they called a clerical error. They said her year of birth was wrongly entered as 1962 — instead of 1963 — in her school admission records in Tamil Nadu.</p>.<p>Her birth certificate, issued in Bengaluru, has her actual year of birth, they told DH.</p>.<p>The board of management of the school, run by the Karnataka Central Diocese of the Church of South India, said the matter was already in court.</p>.<p>Shanthi took charge as principal of the institution in 2017. According to the age entered in her SSLC records, she is due to retire in October 2022.</p>.<p>The principal has filed a petition (No 14704/2022) in the Madras High Court against the Directorate of School Education, Tamil Nadu. The court has given time till August 18 for the respondents to file their arguments.</p>.<p><strong>'No lack of transparency'</strong></p>.<p>“There was no lack of transparency because Shanthi had submitted both the documents to the diocese and pointed out the discrepancy. The diocese, through its own subject experts, had scrutinised the documents,” a source close to the principal told DH.</p>.<p>The source said Shanthi had taken repeated efforts to have the error legally corrected and the matter was placed before the court only this year.</p>.<p>A senior diocese functionary told DH that some church members had submitted a formal complaint on Monday.</p>.<p>The complaint will be placed before the executive committee of the diocese, diocesan secretary Rev Vincent Vinodkumar told DH. He is in charge of the diocese in the absence of Bishop P K Samuel, who is on an overseas trip.</p>.<p>“The management is aware of the discrepancy and the legal processes being followed to correct it. A court is hearing the matter and the board’s decision will be in line with the verdict,” said S Shivakumar, a member of the board of management.</p>
<p>The Cathedral Composite PU College and High School in Bengaluru was on Tuesday hit by allegations that its principal was set for an undue extension in office.</p>.<p>Christy Glory Shanthi, it was alleged, was due for retirement this year but was getting another year at work on the basis of ‘tampered’ birth records.</p>.<p>Sources close to the principal traced the allegation to what they called a clerical error. They said her year of birth was wrongly entered as 1962 — instead of 1963 — in her school admission records in Tamil Nadu.</p>.<p>Her birth certificate, issued in Bengaluru, has her actual year of birth, they told DH.</p>.<p>The board of management of the school, run by the Karnataka Central Diocese of the Church of South India, said the matter was already in court.</p>.<p>Shanthi took charge as principal of the institution in 2017. According to the age entered in her SSLC records, she is due to retire in October 2022.</p>.<p>The principal has filed a petition (No 14704/2022) in the Madras High Court against the Directorate of School Education, Tamil Nadu. The court has given time till August 18 for the respondents to file their arguments.</p>.<p><strong>'No lack of transparency'</strong></p>.<p>“There was no lack of transparency because Shanthi had submitted both the documents to the diocese and pointed out the discrepancy. The diocese, through its own subject experts, had scrutinised the documents,” a source close to the principal told DH.</p>.<p>The source said Shanthi had taken repeated efforts to have the error legally corrected and the matter was placed before the court only this year.</p>.<p>A senior diocese functionary told DH that some church members had submitted a formal complaint on Monday.</p>.<p>The complaint will be placed before the executive committee of the diocese, diocesan secretary Rev Vincent Vinodkumar told DH. He is in charge of the diocese in the absence of Bishop P K Samuel, who is on an overseas trip.</p>.<p>“The management is aware of the discrepancy and the legal processes being followed to correct it. A court is hearing the matter and the board’s decision will be in line with the verdict,” said S Shivakumar, a member of the board of management.</p>
