Kerala High Court on Friday ordered the closure of an unaided private English medium school in Thiruvananthapuram, which was facing charges of locking up a UKG student in a dog kennel as part of punishment. It was on September 29 that Jawahar English medium school on the outskirts of the city faced a complaint from a parent that his son was locked up in the kennel for three hours as a punishment for talking to his friends in the class. Taking a cue from the Childline alert, Kerala police had arrested the school headmistress Sashikala. The student’s class teacher Deepika was also facing case as she also figured in the complaint. But, Deepika was not arrested. The school has been functioning in a premises attached to a rented house, for several years. Subsequent to the complaint and arrest of the headmistress, the education department ordered the closure of the school, where 120-odd students were studying. But the parents of other students wanted the school be opened and sought for a detailed probe into the incident. The school management had also alleged foul play in the complaint, saying that the allegation was part of a bid to destroy the school. Adding curiosity to the issue, another private school volunteered to absorb all the student of the controversial Jawahar school. The school management and the arrested principal sought CBI probe to unravel the conspiracy, which they had found behind locking up the kid in the kennel. Although the education department wanted closure of the school, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy intervened in such a manner that the issue should not spoil the education of other students. Parents Teachers Association at the school had also petitioned the Chief Minister demanding the opening of the school. Subsequently, the school was opened, but the parents of the kid, who raised the lock up in the kennel issue, moved the high court demanding the closure of the school. The high court on Friday stayed the functioning of the school on the ground that it did not have necessary infrastructure and the school was not recognized by the state government. The controversial school is among hundreds of private schools functioning without government recognition. The PTA of the school had earlier stated that they would fight the case to ensure that the school is reopened. The school management had stated that they were ready to face any probe in the incident. Although police have registered a case against the headmistress, they could not get any evidence to substantiate the charges that the student was locked up in the kennel. The kid's sister, studying in the same school, had given statement against the management.
