KOZHIKODE: The Kerala State Commission for the Protection of Child Rights has asked the Wakf Board to ensure that no corporal punishment is meted out to the students in the madrassas. This follows a complaint filed by a parent that his son was tortured at a Salafi madrassa in Kochi. The institutions have been asked to register under section 36 of Wakf Act 1995. Otherwise, the board will have to take action leading to criminal prosecution.
As per the parent’s complaint, his son, a class four student, was beaten up by a woman teacher of the madrassa in June for failing to complete the homework. He took up the matter with Childline and Child Welfare Committee as the madrassa authorities did not take any action. The teacher was suspended for six months. The parent also complained that the teachers were neither trained nor qualified.
However, the Salafi Masjid secretary stated that the parent was trying to defame the organisation and that the madrassa was being controlled by the mosque committee. The commission found that though the madrassas were not included in the RTE Act, corporal punishment was a violation of child rights. It also stressed that the teachers in these institutions should be trained and made aware of the child rights.
