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Mumbai School Principal Denies Boy Admission As He Has Single Mother, Video Sparks Outrage

byDisha Banerjee
17th June 2019
2 minute read

Raising a child as a single parent in itself is a difficult task, let alone being stigmatised by society. Single parents are often seen in a negative light, assumed to have had unsuccessful marriages and hence, deemed unfit to raise children. More so is the case with single mothers because they tend to face further levels of discrimination owing to their gender.

Having said that, a shocking incident in Mumbai has been receiving much attention in which a school denied admission to a boy because he’s raised by a single mother.

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According to a report by India Today, a 27-year-old woman named Sujata Mohite claimed that St Lawrence School in Navi Mumbai denied admission to her 7-year-old son since she is a single mother.

“I have heard about the school and it has a good reputation. A month ago, my son and I went for an interview for his admission. They told us that we both passed the interview and then asked me about the child’s father? I told them that I am divorced and I am capable to look after my child. They later tell me that admissions are full. I was actually shocked after this”, she said.

Wanting to inquire the matter further, Sujata asked a friend to check if the admissions were still on. After her friend visited the school and asked authorities about admission, they claimed that it was still on. Sujata then decided to take matters into her own hand and confront the principal of the school.

“I even decided to make a video of the whole conversation. When I met the principal, she was rude and told me that admissions are not given to children of single parents. She refused to talk to me when I asked her how that was possible. She kept saying that it was her decision and that I was wasting her time. She said kids of single parents are a problem to the school”, she said.

The video of the conversation between Sujata and the school’s principal has since then gone viral:

Responding to the video, a spokesperson of the Ryan Group (to which the school belongs) issued a statement whereby he says that the school “does not discriminate in admitting students under any criteria nor do we have any such policy for single parents”.

An investigation regarding the matter is ongoing after which the Ryan Group would take necessary action against the Principal. Minister of Women and Child Development Smriti Irani has raised the matter with the HRD ministry.

Netizens found the matter shameful and have been expressing outrage against the school principal:

https://twitter.com/PiyushSinghk/status/1139739911223824384?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1139739911223824384%7Ctwgr%5E393039363b636f6e74726f6c&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.scoopwhoop.com%2Fnews%2Fprincipal-apparently-denied-admission-to-child-for-having-single-mother%2F

It is absolutely disgraceful to deny a child quality education because he/she is raised by a single parent!

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