The Odisha Soochana Adhikar Abhijan on Friday charged that the Odisha State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (OSCPCR) has failed to protect the rights of the children while many poor students are being victimised by private English medium schools.
“Two separate cases of mental and physical torture by two English medium schools were filed at the OSCPCR. In the first case, the Takshila School authorities asked a Class-IX student, Shrikant Aropratik, to sit in Class-VIII where in another case the SAI International School authorities threw out a student from the school in mid-session. But despite appeals, the OSCPCR failed to ensure justice to the children,” said Abhijan convener Pradip Pradhan at a Press conference here.
“The functioning of the child rights panel is questionable for its blatant failure to protect the rights of children. Rather, the OSCPCR, which is mandated to provide protection to children, is now seen as an agent of private schools,” alleged Pradhan.
Though the complaints about physical torture and humiliation of two children in the two aforesaid private schools have been lodged at the OSCPCR and the Child Welfare Committee, Khordha since last three months, no action has been taken against the culprits, he rued.
Social activists urged the Governor of the State to take action against the OSCPCR after conducting an investigation.
Victim children’s parents Prakash Nayak and Amit Subhadra, advocate Sudhir Mohanty, Sanjay Sahoo and Saroj Jali were present at the news conference, among others.