Interfaith Couple Leave Religion Column 'Blank', Kerala School Allegedly Refuse Son Admission

A private school in Kerala's capital Thiruvananthapuram has allegedly refused to admit a student after his interfaith parents refused to fill up the religion column in the application form.

Naseem and his wife Dhanya, who are residents of Thiruvananthapuram alleged that the St Mary's Higher Secondary School in Pattom insisted that they fill the religion column on the application form to get their son admitted there.

The couple who were seeking admission for their son in Class I had written NIL in the religion column, which did not go down well with the school is managed by the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church.

According to Naseem, the nun who is in charge of the Lower Primary section of the school insisted that their son, who had cleared the admission test will only be accepted if they fill up the religion section.

However, after the parent questioned this, they were told to produce an affidavit from the couple on why they were not stating religion.

The couple argued that the Kerala government has clarified that mentioning religion is not necessary for school admissions in the state.

As per the rules, though there are columns to enter the religion and caste of the student, they are not mandatory.

Similarly, it is mandatory to fill the column regarding the name of the guardian, it is not compulsory to enter the names of father and mother

After the incident was reported in local media, authorities of the school, which is said to the largest in Asia, with the total number of students exceeding 14,000 reached out to the parents informing that they are willing to admit their son without mentioning his religion.

The parent has however refused this offer and got their son admitted to another school.

Following the media reports, state Education Minister C Raveendranath directed the Deputy Director of Education to inquire into the matter and submit a report.

It is ironic that a student was denied school admission in a state that in 2018 proudly announced that a total of 1,24,147 students - from Class I to higher secondary classes - have sought admissions without specifying their religion.

¡°This is a happy news. Our country provides for the freedom to live without joining any religion or caste. I didn¡¯t know that a significant number has utilized that freedom. I congratulate these parents who have a positive outlook in grooming children. Let the children select their own religion or remain religion-less after they become mature enough,¡± the minister had then said in the state assembly.