New Delhi (Sputnik) – A criminal case has been registered against a private school in the Indian capital, New Delhi, after a group of 16 toddlers, all girls, were discovered locked in the basement of the school building. The school authorities said that they did not allow the girls to leave the building so that their parents would show up and clarify why their school fees had not been paid.
The incident happened in the Rabea Girls Public School in the Hauz Qazi area of Delhi. According to some of the parents, the children were confined for almost five hours in extreme heat without food and water.
"I have not paid the fees but the way they treated my daughter can in no way be justified. She was kept in the basement from 7.30 am to 12.30 pm. Strict action should be taken against the school administration," Zameer Akhtar, one of the parents, told Sputnik.
However, the school administration has denied locking the children in the basement.
"The Children were not alone in the basement but the teachers were there to look after them. The basement is, in fact, a playing area and it is a part of the school premises," Farah Diba, the principal of the school, told the media.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has also sought a report on this matter.