Radiance News Desk:
Recently, there took place two child beating incidents that shook the conscience of the nation. One took place in a school in Khubbapur, Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh while the other in another school in the Bani area, Kathua, Jammu and Kashmir. Both the incidents are highly condemnable and cannot be justified by any means.
Although it is not correct to analyze the incidents from a communal perspective, we present the facts emanating from both incidents to see how two similar incidents lead to different events and reactions in our country.
| Muzaffarnagar | Kathua | |
| School | Neha Public School | Upper Secondary Government School |
| Incident in brief | A seven-year-old boy was slapped by his classmates upon instructions by the teacher as the boy was unable to recite a multiplication table in a Mathematics class. The video of the incident went viral on social media as the teacher was uttering some racial slurs against Muslims. | Class X boy was beaten by his school teacher and School Principal for writing “Jai Sri Ram” on the black board. The incident came to prominence after a video of the victim narrating the thrashing he received – went viral on social media. |
| Accused | Hindu | Muslim |
| Victim | Muslim | Hindu |
| Action taken | Teacher herself is the owner of the school | Teacher and School Principal suspended and FIR registered |
| Sections under which FIR is registered | Sections 323 (causing hurt) and 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace) | Section 323 ( willful injury ), 342 (wrongful imprisonment), 504 (willfully offend ), 506 ( Criminal Threats) and Allegations under Section 75 (Child Cruelty) of Juvenile Justice (JJ) Act |
| Sections | Bailable | Section 75 of JJ Act is Non-Bailable |
| Accused situation | Gave interviews to Electronic media. Police are not arresting the accused | Principal is on the run and yet to be arrested |
| Action taken by authorities | The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) asked the SSP Muzaffarnagar to initiate an inquiry (submit action taken report within 7 days) and lodge an FIR against the teacher. The District collector and Deputy CM have also taken cognizance of the incident. | Deputy Commissioner of Kathua, Rakesh Minhas formed a 3-member committee to investigate the incident. The 3 members are – Deputy Board Magistrate of Bani, Deputy Chief Education Officer of Kathua and Principal of Government Upper Secondary School in Kharote. |
| Accused reaction to media | “I am not ashamed. I have served the people of this village as a teacher. They all are with me” | Not available |
| Victim’s guardian reaction to media | “My son is seven. The teacher had my child beaten up repeatedly by students. My nephew made the video, he had gone to school for some work… My seven-year-old was tortured for an hour or two. He is scared. This is not a Hindu-Muslim issue. We want the law to take its own course” | They demand strict punishment to the accused. |
| Reaction to incident by the village | While some tried to dissuade the victim’s father not to pursue the FIR, many also went to the house of the victim and made to boys who beat the victim – apologize and hug him. This was a welcome step to cool tempers and to send a message of communal harmony. | There were protests against the incident by locals. However, the situation was brought under control through swift action by the authorities. |
