Palghar : Half a dozen teachers from Carmelite School, Vasai, got a shocker on the eve of International Women’s Day when they received show cause notices (memos) on Saturday, from the very school they had been dedicatedly serving for years. The reason was their alleged open and staunch support to their colleague, Diana Fernandes, who was suspended on March 2 as she had allegedly supported parents in the Parent Teacher Association (PTA) meet conducted in February.
The memo, a copy of which is available with FPJ, clearly states that these six teachers had supported their suspended colleague Fernandes and the school management wasn’t happy with this action. Hence, these teachers have been given three days, from the date of the receipt of the memo to submit their reasons for not fulfilling school duties after entering the school campus and openly supporting Fernandes.
When FPJ tried to speak to the teachers, none of them answered the phone calls and text messages but sources confirmed that the teachers were busy tapping their resources to seek a solution to this issue. Principal Sr Mary Maud abruptly hung up when FPJ tried to get her reaction on this issue.
Meanwhile, the mood in the parents’ and students’ camp is a bit tense as the school is on the punishing mode not considering the exam season. They feel that the ongoing issues will definitely have a negative impact on the students as they are unaware which teacher will be filling this vacuum.
Fernandes continues her fight against the Carmelite school, where she served for around 25 years, demanding proper trial and also has support from various factions like parents, students, alumni and also the school staff. Sources also confirmed that Fernandes had sent her reply via speed post which was received on Friday by the school, as her hand delivered reply wasn’t accepted and she was promptly denied entry in the school.
Vishal Rajemahadik
