Tensions escalated at Abhinav Bal Vikas Mandir School in CIDCO Uttamnagar as a large group of parents staged a sit-in protest on Thursday after the school withheld students’ result sheets over unpaid fees. The protest, which began at the school premises, later moved to the Ambad Police Station where an official complaint was lodged against the school management.
The school, run by the Maratha Vidya Prasarak Sanstha, is a 100% government-aided institution. As per government orders, aided schools are not allowed to charge tuition fees. However, parents allege that the administration has continued to demand fees for the past two years, in violation of these rules.
Despite repeated complaints, the school reportedly distributed result sheets only to students whose fees were fully paid. Outraged parents claim this is a direct violation of the Right to Education Act, which states that no school can deny access to results or certificates due to unpaid fees.
Hundreds of parents, including mothers and fathers, marched on foot from the school to the Ambad Police Station and met Police Inspector Rakesh Hande to register their complaint. The protesting parents carried school notebooks with messages clearly stating that children's admissions for the next academic year cannot be stopped under any circumstances.
Parents also expressed anger over remarks made by the school administration. When they questioned the withholding of results, they were allegedly told to shift their children to municipal schools if they couldn’t afford to pay. This remark further fueled public outrage.
The Deputy Director of Education had recently formed an inquiry committee to investigate the matter. Dhule Education Officer Kiran Kuwar, who heads the committee, had already written in the school’s communication book, clearly instructing the principal not to withhold any student’s mark sheet or certificate.
Parents have now given a deadline: if all students’ mark sheets and certificates are not issued and free admission is not provided by June 1, hundreds of parents will return to the school to protest on the very first day of the new academic year.