Early on Monday morning, Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia met Madhu, a teenaged Pakistani refugee, and forthwith ordered that the government needed to “walk the extra mile to accommodate her desire to pursue study in our school” by relaxing “all rules and regulations.”
The move comes after External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj met Madhu on Saturday evening and phoned Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal asking him to admit the girl in the government school she wanted.
Mr. Kejriwal assured her of all assistance and told her he would ask Mr. Sisodia to do what was needed.
Madhu (16) was a student of class IX in Pakistan’s Punjab and had come to India with her mother, siblings, her uncle and cousins two years ago. Her father Amar Chand passed away long ago.
Forced to leave Pakistan following religious persecution, all her documents like school leaving certificate, were left behind. She was being denied admission in the government school at Sanjay Colony, Bhatti Mines for want of documents.
In a communication to the Director and Secretary (Education) on Monday, Mr. Sisodia said, “To accommodate the request of Ms. Madhu, a migrant girl from Pakistan, the government can consider relaxing whatever rules and regulations, if they come in the way of her joining our school.”
“Admission to Ms. Madhu may immediately be provided at any of our government schools located in Sanjay Colony, Bhattti Mines, Fatehpur Beri, New Delhi. She should also be given necessary books, uniform etc and we may facilitate whatever is required for the girl to study in our school,” he said in the order.
“I am very happy. Manish Sisodia ji met us early morning today. I will be going to school on Wednesday,” said an excited Madhu.
On September 7, The Hindu had highlighted how after struggling for months to get admission in the Delhi government co-ed senior secondary school in Sanjay Colony, her new home, she approached advocate and activist Ashok Agarwal, who then wrote to Mr. Kejriwal for intervention.
The school had refused to enrol her in Class IX as she had no documents to support her.
After meeting Madhu, Mr Sisodia said, “Madhu has stated before me that she was studying in class IX when she left Pakistan. Due to peculiar circumstances, she is not in possession of any school leaving certificate, date of birth certificate etc. She wants to study and on humanitarian grounds, it is my considered opinion that we need to walk extra mile to accommodate her desire to pursue study in our school.”
Swaraj thanks Sisodia
Later in the day, Ms. Swaraj, in a tweet, thanked Mr. Sisodia for “this kind gesture.
On Saturday, after meeting Madhu, she had thanked The Hindu for highlighting her plight.
