WATCH: To avoid studies, brother-sister lock themselves for three years

A girl in Uttarakhand's Haridwar locked herself in a room for three years, as an act of protest, after her parents scolded her for not paying the needed attention to studies. The girl is now 18. In 2013, her parents admonished her as they were dissatisfied with her Class 10 results. She was irritated and fed up and took the decision thereafter.

Following her steps, her 15-year-old brother also dropped out of school in 2016 and confined himself to a separate room. Both the rooms were equipped with television, air-conditioner, and a laptop.

The complaint was lodged when a resident of Panchvati Colony, where the children live, got suspicious after not seeing them for a long time. The discovery shocked the police as well as other residents.

When police reached the house, they found the rooms locked from inside. They had to convince the children to open the door.

According to media reports, Superintendent of Police Mamta Vohra was informed by a neighbour that the children were forcefully locked in the room by their parents. However, the findings by the rescue team were very different. The brother and sister had confined themselves in the room. The children did not want to study or do something with their lives--they only wanted to rest. So in order to save themselves from the strict study cycle, they took the step.

The police has cautioned them that they will be sent to reform homes if the act is repeated.

They used to have their demands met through a "chit system". Whenever they needed something, they would write it down on a piece of paper and slip it down the door. They would ask for anything from food, mobile phone to laptop and the parents would give in. The police claim that the parents are gullible and were harassed and blackmailed by the children.

The police also claim that the girl was in a very unhygienic condition--and appeared to not have bathed in months. 

The father is a manager at a two-wheeler showroom.