Hyderabad: Parents of Glendale Academy students Alleging that the management of Glendale Academy is violating the government’s order by collecting the entire fee instead of only tuition fees and not to charge the full fee during the lockdown have complained with police and education department officials.

Under government order (GO) 46, schools are authorized to charge only a nominal fee, paid monthly, as a relief measure for parents because of the economic hardship due to the coronavirus pandemic.

While the parents claimed that the school has failed to provide a breakup of the fee and is refusing access to online classes to students with outstanding dues, the school management said that they are following all norms issued by the state government.

“We have written numerous emails and sent complaints to the administration to review the fee being charged. We wanted to know the break-up of the ‘term fee’ being levied, but the management has never provided us a satisfactory response.”

The parents demanded that the school charge only a nominal tuition fee monthly since students are taking only three hours of online classes.

“Last week, my children’ online accounts were deactivated twice. They are denying access during morning hours, when live classes are conducted and are reactivating the accounts later, just to show it to the officials,” said the parent of two students — in classes 5 and 8 — who is one of the complainants.

Responding to complaints that students’ access to online classes has been blocked if they had not paid the fees, the management said, “Some parents who have lost a job or had to close their business have approached us individually and we felt that it was our responsibility to support them and we have done so.”

Rejecting the parents’ charges, Minu Salooja, assistant director of the Glendale Education Group, said the complaint was for the education department to deal with, not the police. “Registering a police complaint is not just.”

The school said it complied with the GO 46 to roll back the fee to last year’s level and to collect it on a monthly rather than term basis.

Police confirmed they have received complaints from parents and are carrying out an investigation.

There has been no reply from the education department.