6th Standard Student Beaten for Liking an Instagram Post in UP
The principal has stated that she was not aware of the incident and had no idea that the student was physically assaulted
Rohit Yadav, a resident of Burmanagar, Uttar Pradesh, made an Instagram post where he alleged that his 10-year old son was brutally beaten by his teachers. In the post, he shows his son’s bruises which appear to be that of constant slapping and thrashing that has led to an eardrum rupture.
Rohit Yadav states in his video that his 10-year old son is in the 6th standard, studying in St. Paul’s School, in the city of Etah. Rohit, in the video, said that he received a call one morning from his son’s class teacher Praveen Kumar, who was complaining against his son, and asked Rohit to come and meet him urgently.
Rohit went to the school and directly went inside of the Principal’s office. The principal told Rohit that his son had liked an Instagram post during class hours. The post that he liked was demeaning the educational institution in which the student was studying.
Rohit agreed that this was wrong and was ready to rebuke his son regarding this issue. But, when he saw his son with a red-cheek, completely bruised and serious damage to the ears, he was shocked. The boy he saw was injured and clearly dealing with pain and trauma.
The principal has stated that she was not aware that such an incident had occurred and had no idea that the student was physically assaulted. Although, the student has claimed that even the principal and all teachers were well-aware about the beating and they had not allowed him to attend any classes and made him sit outside and not be part of the class.
After meeting his son, Rohit issued an FIR against the institution, in the nearby police station. Rohit has also alleged that teachers Praveen Kumar and Harshit Chauhan were the ones who were responsible for the assault.
The Etah police have registered a case following parent’s complaint. Corporal punishment is strictly prohibited in schools under the ‘Right to Education Act’ RTE ACT, 2009 and the Juvenile Justice Act. Rohit stated that he received support from local police and media and is thankful to them
In the post, Rohit raises a serious question and says,”Is this why we pay so much fees to such schools and this is what we get in return? How can beating such a young child be even allowed? Will any parent send their child to St.Pauls?”
Rohit’s reaction is what any parent’s reaction would be after knowing what happened to their son. Sadly, such incidents are still normalized in many educational institutes in India to this very day. Despite legal ban on it, it still persists to this very day.
Several reports have been published, stating that such incidents can cause an increase in aggression in students, decreased mental health and syndromes of anxiety and depression.
According to recent updates, under pressure from Basic Shiksha Adhikari (BSA), the teacher responsible for this has been arrested. The police are expected to file a chargesheet, once the final medical report is added to the case file, this will indicate if the charges would be upgraded to” causing grievous hurt.”
This article is written by Satvik AVP , a student of Loyola Academy, Secunderabad, interning with Deccan Chronicle.
