Draconian methods of discipline see Gzb teacher arrested for caning 6-year-old
Media outcry finally forced city police to take cognizance of the brutal beating of a six-year-old by his kindergarten teacher and booked her under the Juvenile Justice (JJ) Act. Police had played a partisan role after parents of the child lodged a report with the local police. The culprit was allowed to walk free despite the child having received corporal punishment. A red-faced Ghaziabad city police on Sunday slapped Sections of the JJ Act against the accused teacher Jyotsna Nigam and arrested her.
Senior police officers were evasive on the issue as the school in question belongs to a local leader of the Samajwadi Party and municipal councilor Mahesh Yadav. Jyotsna Nigam had been working with Krishna Public School in Vijay Nagar for the last eight months. She has been booked under Section 323 of Indian Penal Code (IPC) for “voluntarily causing injury” and Uttar Pradesh’s child protection laws. Offences registered under Section 323 are non-cognizable.
The family of the boy had filed a police complaint after he came home with contusions all over his back and hips on Saturday. Parents said the child was under shock when he reached home and had to be coaxed into telling what had happened and said he was beaten by teacher with an iron ruler all over his back and shoulder.
The mother of the child said that when she went to school after the incident she was told by the teacher that her son was beaten for not doing his homework and would be beaten again if he fails to do his homework.
After she was arrested, the teacher admitted her mistake and said, “I was shocked when I realised what I had done. I did not beat him with a rod, but with a stick. I can’t say anything more than that,” she said.
The family got a medical examination of the child done and have handed over the medical report to the police. The school has expressed regret over the incident.