Child's long hair ties up parents, school in a tangle

Bengaluru: Hair raising? Yes. A nursery child's long hair, which has not been cut in the name of superstition, is at the centre of a fight between the child's parents and the school management, which has threatened to cancel the admission to the child unless he makes a visit to the barber. The parents on Friday protested in front of the "non-believing" St Vincent Pallotti School in Babusapalya near Banasawadi, while the management stuck to its stand, saying their institution does not have any place for such superstition.

The parents said they are scared to get the child's hair cut as it would lead to an untimely death in their family, but the school principal is insisting on the haircut before the child is admitted into the school. Principal Fr Paul D'Souza clarified to Deccan Chronicle that the school did not cancel the admission. "It is a superstitious belief. We cannot allow such practices in our classrooms. We will allow the child entry, once he cuts his hair," he said.

It remained a tangle even after a meeting between the parents and the school management on Friday evening, as both parties refused to give in. The block education officer said that the child’s hair was 2.5 inches long.