Representative Image of a classroom.
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Taking suo motu cognisance of a purported video from Muzaffarnagar in UP where a teacher is seen to be urging students to physically assault one of their classmates, the National Commission for the Protection of Child Rights on Saturday asked the District administration to book the teacher and file a status report within three days.
In a letter to the SSP, NCPCR chairperson Priyank Kanungo said that prima facie, the incident points at a contravention of Section 17 of the Right to Education Act 2009 and Section 75 of the Juvenile Justice (Care and protection ofChildren) Act 2015. Section 75 of the JJ Act makes it a punishable offence to assault a child when under one's care, and can invite rigorous imprisonment extendable upto five years and a fine of up to Rs 5 lakh.
“The Commission thereby requests your good offices to initiate an inquiry and lodge an FIR against the teacher who are found to be in violation of the section as slated above,” the letter states.
It also added that since the minor victim as well as the other children should be produced before a Child Welfare Committee, and that all the children be provided with necessary counselling. It also asked for an Action Taken Report to be submitted to the Commission within seven days of receipt of said letter.
In the NCPCR's letter to the DM, Kanungo asked for a report that details whether the school where the incident occurred is recognised, and if it is, to provide the former with a certificate of recognition. He also asked for details of the number of children as well as teachers enrolled in the school, along with details of qualifications and year of joining of the teaching staff. The report should also contain details of whether any orientation or training workshop has been conducted for teachers on child rights in the last five years.
A video surfaced online on Friday where a woman called Tripti Tyagi, principal of Neha Public School, urged the classmates of a Muslim boy to assault him because he got his mathematics homework wrong. The video and the visible communal undertone of the teacher’s orders led to widespread outrage; the NCPCR has however asked people to not share the video to avoid the public from recognising the victim.