The school run by the wife of Actor Rajinikanth was locked by the landlord of the building in Chennai on charges that the rent agreed to was not being paid.

The school authorities said they have decided to file a defamation case against the landlord for creating immense agony to the school and issuing false statements to the media.

About 400 children of Ashram, run by Latha Rajinikanth, have been shifted to another institution.

Landlord Venkateshwaralu claimed that the management agreed to pay the rent as per a court directive till they vacate the premises by May 2018 which they had not adhered to fully.

He said the school authorities did not pay the quantum of rent as agreed to.

The management said the school was functioning on the existing premises for more than a decade and that it had faced a lot of harassment in the recent past due to the family dispute of the landlord.

It is not just about the rent but it is about their exploitation of the situation and it is about asking unfair, unreasonable and exorbitant increment in rentals which we have been negotiating and speaking with them [landlord], a statement from the management said.

The management had decided to vacate the premises and negotiations were on to settle the matter. The landlord harassed them by using the media continuously when a civil dispute was pending in the court, the statement said.

Since the matter is sub judice, we would like to record this statement. Taking law into his hands and without any information, once again the landlord has created immense agony to the school, children, parents and to the management today, it said.

We will be filing a defamation case against the landlord for making false statements to the press. Apart from that, we will wait for the law to take its own course, it said.

We request the media and the public to understand the truth, it added.

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Latha Rajinikanth's Ashram school locked by landlord for 'non-payment of dues' - The Hindu