A Bug of moral policing seems to have bit some schools in this nursery admission session. After one school asked parents with more than two children to not apply saying it was supporting the government’s two-child policy, another institution is now actively encouraging vegetarianism and non-smoking among parents.

Mahavir Senior Model Academy is giving five extra points each to parents who are non-smokers or non-drinkers or vegetarian. A minority institution — the Mahavira Trust runs it — the school’s officials said it is giving preference to such parents to promote a healthy way of life.

“Smoking and drinking are bad,” school principal S L Jain said, “and parents have welcomed this.”

The school had devised this unique points system last year, Jain said.

School officials said they have informed the Directorate of Education (DoE) about its schedule (it will distribute registration forms beginning December 1) and its admission criteria, as required by DoE guidelines, on October 27. The Supreme Court had last year granted autonomy to private, unaided and recognised schools to frame their own admission criteria but these must incorporate the broad guidelines as per the High Court’s order.

Ashok Aggarwal, a social jurist and counsel for parents, called the school’s norm “ridiculous”. Schools, he said, can frame their guidelines but there is no end to such whims and parents can challenge these decisions in court. “This is moral policing,” Aggarwal said. “Tomorrow they can say anything — they could well incorporate all the Directive Principles of the Indian Constitution and impose them on parents.”

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