Church authorities have rejected a government report that found Chandigarh’s Sacred Heart School’s expulsion of a student was arbitrary and appeared to be a result of external influence.

Ruchika Girhotra was expelled when she was a 10th grader in 1990 shortly after she had been molested by S. Rathore, then director general of police in Haryana state.

The girl committed suicide three years later.

An inquiry launched by the Chandigarh administration found there had been pressure to expel Girhotra for non-payment of fees.

The report’s author, Magistrate Prerna Puri, said principal Sister S. Sebastina and teachers denied knowledge of the molestation. Girhotra is the only student the school has expelled because of non-payment of fees, the report found.

The school, Simla Chandigarh diocese and the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI) all reject the report’s findings.

Diocesan vicar general Father Thomas Anchanickal said the school did not act under pressure. But he also told UCA News that no student would be expelled just because of non-payment of fees and denied any responsibility for the girl’s death.

“She committed suicide after three years and the school is no way responsible for it,” said the priest, who is in charge of diocesan schools.

CBCI spokesperson Father Babu Joseph says his enquiries indicated that the school had not acted under pressure. The government “enquiry findings are not true. Why should a Catholic institution act under pressure?” he asked.

It was “unfortunate” that Girhotra killed herself, Father Joseph said. “Maybe the school should have taken special care of her. In that case, there was an oversight on the part of the school.”

Father Joseph said the controversy has alerted the CBCI commission for education on the need to regularly monitor the performance of Church schools.

“We will also issue some guidelines to schools and other institutions to deal with similar situations,” he said.

Source: Church denies school expelled girl under pressure (UCAN)

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