Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Thursday visited the school where 16 kindergarten students were allegedly confined to the basement for non-payment of fee.

Kejriwal said they interacted with the principal of Rabia Public School, Naheed Usmani, and warned her that this kind of treatment towards children would not be tolerated and the Delhi government and the police would take action.

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He added that an inquiry would be conducted into the matter.

Kejriwal and Sisodia also interacted with students and teachers at the school. They were accompanied by Environment Minister Imran Hussain, the MLA from Ballimaran constituency, the area where the school is located.

Delhi CM @ArvindKejriwal along with @Minister_Edu @msisodia and Cabinet Minister @ImranHussaain reaches Rabea School where kids were detained.
CM interacted with those children and their parents. pic.twitter.com/SuCp9yQ0kj

— AAP (@AamAadmiParty) July 12, 2018

On Wednesday, Kejriwal had sought a report from the education department about the incident.

The matter came to light after police were informed by some parents that 16 children were locked up in the basement by their teachers between 7 am and noon in central Delhi’s Hauz Qazi area.

At least 16 girl students, all aged four to five, were allegedly locked up in the basement of the school in Delhi over the issue of non-payment of tuition fees.

When the parents went to pick up their wards from the Rabia Girls Public School, they got to know that their wards were locked up in the basement. Some of the parents immediately approached the police over the matter as the school authorities allegedly refused to free the children.

The parents alleged that the children had been kept in confinement for around four to five hours without food and water.

According to some of the parents, they had already paid the fees but their kids were locked up too.

A case has been registered under Section 75 of the Juvenile Justice Act against the school authorities and the Delhi Police has initiated investigation.

Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia tweeted on Wednesday that he was shocked to know about the incident and said officers had been directed to take strict action.

(With agency inputs)