St. Patrick's Junior College, is run by the Congregation of Jesus and Mary, and is the oldest convent outside Asia, founded in 1842 by French sisters led by Claudine Thevnet, who reached Agra in a bullock cart from Allahabad, at the invitation of the then Archbishop of Agra whose jurisdiction extended all the way till Tibet.

 The ADA action infuriated the girls and teachers who marched in a procession to the ADA vice chairman Tanvir Zafar Ali's office to ask him some "very uncomfortable questions."

 Already some parents have accused government agencies of harassing Christians in Agra, on one pretext or the other. "What was the need for taking action against only St. Patrick's Junior College, such a prestigious minority institution," asked a parent Gautam Seth on Friday support poured in from all sections for the school management.

 The mayor of Agra Anjula Singh Mahaur and principals of more than 40 schools have protested against ADA's high-handedness and called for speedy resolution.

 The girls pointedly asked Tanvir "why are you blind to thousands of encroachments in the city and illegal constructions, and have only targeted us for this action?" ADA chairman could only say he would get the issue investigated and do whatever was legally tenable. Ali told Agratoday.in, "I dont understand why such a fuss is being made about this issue. If the sister gives in writing that they are willing to compound the case, the problem could be easily resolved. It is also wrong to say that we have targeted any particular minority institution. We keep taking action against whoever violates the norms."

Sister Lawrence, principal of the Convent told Agratoday.in Friday morning that the ADA officials now appear inclined to open the hall on or before the Teachers' Day.

Earlier Sister Lawrence publicly accused the ADA mandarins of pressuring her to admit some students.

ADA officials explained that the newly constructed hall had not followed the plan submitted for approval. ADA secretary Udayee Ram said the college had been served with legal notices but there was no response. This forced them to act against the school by sealing the hall.

Talking to Agratoday.in, an angry Agra mayor Anjula Singh Mahaur said, "I will go to any extent to stop this madness, they can’t see what is happening in the city and are not able to stop encroachments all over. But they are harassing the Catholic sisters, nuns and students."