Kerala High Court directs State Education Dpt. to ensure complaint boxes in all Schools
A division bench of the Kerala High Court has directed the State Education Department to ensure that complaint boxes are installed in all schools for students to submit complaints anonymously.
The Kerala High Court on Monday directed the State Education Department to ensure complaint boxes are installed in all schools for students to submit complaints anonymously.
Court was hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) for the implementation of a Government Order (GO) issued in 2016 that directed all schools in Kerala, both government/aided and unaided (Higher Secondary, Vocational Higher Secondary), to set up complaint boxes.
A division bench of Chief Justice S Manikumar and Justice Shaji P Chaly issued the order, noting that the government's circulars in this regard had not been implemented in all schools and directed,
“Wherever drop boxes have not yet been installed, they should be installed as soon as possible in all Government/aided and unaided schools. In addition to the foregoing, we direct all Deputy Directors of Education, Regional Deputy Directors of Education (HSE Section), Assistant Directors (VHSE Section), and District/Assistant Educational Officers to send periodic reports to the Director of General Education, Thiruvananthapuram, outlining the nature of complaints and their finality."
The 2016 government order was issued at the request of the Child Welfare Commission to allow students to anonymously raise grievances, particularly those relating to physical abuse or sexual harassment.
However, the petitioner claimed that due to the respondents' lax attitude, most schools in Kerala failed to set up complaint boxes.
It was argued that the respondents' failure to take action against schools that failed to follow the directions in the GO was completely illegal.
On Court’s orders, the Director of the General Education Department filed a statement stating that the GO had been implemented and that instructions had been issued.
Accordingly, Court dismissed the PIL and directed that the GO be implemented expeditiously in all schools where complaint boxes had not yet been installed.
Case Title: Faizal Kulappadam @ Faizal N v State of Kerala