Mockery of RTE: Poor cousin sisters denied school admission

Two cousins who wanted to continue their studies after having dropped out earlier have been denied admission at a government school in east Delhi, violating the Right to Education, said a civil rights group.

The NGO Social Jurist wrote to LG Najeeb Jung about the case of Shashi Garden residents Priyanka and Chandni, both 13.

“Both are school dropouts and now wish to resume their education,” said the NGO.
Priyanka Sahni, daughter of Kamlesh Sahni and Meenu Sahni, used to live with her uncle and aunt in Kolkata, where she attended school till class 3. She recently shifted to Delhi.

Chandni Sahni, daughter of Hari Ram Sahni and Asha Devi, attended school till class 5 in Bihar. “Priyanka and Chandni both along with their mothers had been making rounds of Sarvodaya Kanya Vidyalaya in Patparganj but their admission has been deferred every time,” said the NGO.

“It seems that the mandate of the RTE Act, 2009 that entitles admission into age-appropriate elementary class at any time of the year as a matter of right to every child in the age group of 6-14 has not even been heard of in such schools,” it said.

“Either there is complete ignorance or blatant disregard of these statutory provisions which emboldens the school authorities to mete out such treatment to children who approach these institutions for admission,” it added.

Unless certain stringent steps are taken to improve the situation, the goal of elementary education will remain a far-fetched dream, it said.

“Clear-cut instructions are required to be issued to all the concerned Delhi government school authorities in this regard and errant authorities must be taken to task in order to prevent violations,” it added. The NGO wrote to LG and requested to ensure prompt admission of these two girls to age-appropriate class in SKV in Patparganj.

“The routine practice of denial of admissions by Delhi government schools should be stopped by taking appropriate strong and effective measures,” the letter said.