Multiple shocking incidents at Indian schools have raised the question in the minds of all parents whether our children are safe in school or not?
Recently, many parents were disheartened after hearing the painful and sad incident that happened last year with this girl studying in Class 6 at Jawahar Navodaya School in Madhya Pradesh.
Over a year after the complaint was registered against him, the teacher has been arrested and remanded in 14-days judicial custody for allegedly directing some students to slap their classmate 168 times for not completing her homework.
Yes, for not completing her homework, this young child was subject to so much of humiliation and harassment.
Recalling the horrific incident, the victim’s father Shiv Pratap Singh shared with that his daughter did not go to school from January 1 to 10, 2018 as she was unwell. On the next day, when the girl went to school without completing her homework, the accused, Manoj Verma, told her classmates to slap her as a form of punishment.
Following the instructions, 14 girls slapped the helpless girl two times every day for six days.
Shiv further told the police that his daughter was under extreme stress after the incident. Following the incident, she had to be admitted to the local hospital. She also refused to go to school.
Singh filed a complaint with the school management regarding the incident. The school further constituted a committee to probe the incident.
As per the prosecutor, the panel found the teacher guilty and suspended him.
But, in the meantime, Singh wanted to make sure what happened to her daughter shouldn’t happen with any other helpless child.
So, he also lodged a complaint with the police against the teacher under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act. And finally, the teacher was arrested in connection with the offense on Monday and was denied bail on the same day.
No words can justify the actions of this teacher.
Though we pray that wounds of this little girl are healed as soon as possible, we can’t stop ourselves wondering how safe our kids at their school?
With the increasing crime against kids at school, we urge all the parents to spend time with their kids to understand what happens with them in school on a daily basis. Because the hard truth is that no school cares about your kid as you do. It is only us, the parents, who have the best interest of kids at heart.