The Haryana Human Rights Commission (HHRC) has taken cognisance of an incident involving an 11-year-old Class 5 girl student of a private school who was allegedly told to clean the floor of the classroom by the school principal in Sonepat district earlier this month. Suo motu cognizance was taken after Hindustan Times on September 14 reported the incident that the principal of a private school in Sonepat’s Ridhana village had asked the minor girl to do 50 sit-ups and clean the floor of the classroom as a punishment for not completing homework. The date of hearing has been fixed for October 28.
“The school principal told my daughter to clean the floor of the classroom outside the UKG classroom. She also told the UKG students to chant “shame-shame” against my daughter. She has been traumatised and she cries when we ask her to go to school. She has been under treatment of a psychologist since the incident,” the girl’s mother had said in a complaint to the Baroda police station and Sonepat deputy commissioner.
The girl’s mother alleged that the school principal threatened to shave-off her daughter’s hair if she failed to complete homework on time in future.
A three-member panel headed by justice Lalit Batra observed that the alleged incident violates Article 21, 14, Section 75 and 82 of the Juvenile Justice (care and protection of children) Act, 2015 (JJ Act).
“The Commission holds that the treatment alleged in the complaint constitutes a clear violation of the basic human rights of the minor child, including the right to education, the right to protection from mental and physical abuse, and the right to dignity. The child’s mental health and future development are at serious risk and immediate remedial steps must be taken to protect her and prevent similar incidents in other institutions. The commission directs that an impartial and thorough inquiry be conducted. The inquiry must include recording statements of the complainant, the school principal, teaching staff, other relevant witnesses, and the child’s attending psychologist,” the rights panel said in its order.
{{/usCountry}}“The Commission holds that the treatment alleged in the complaint constitutes a clear violation of the basic human rights of the minor child, including the right to education, the right to protection from mental and physical abuse, and the right to dignity. The child’s mental health and future development are at serious risk and immediate remedial steps must be taken to protect her and prevent similar incidents in other institutions. The commission directs that an impartial and thorough inquiry be conducted. The inquiry must include recording statements of the complainant, the school principal, teaching staff, other relevant witnesses, and the child’s attending psychologist,” the rights panel said in its order.
{{/usCountry}}Justice Batra and two other members said that the responsibility of nurturing a child lies not only with parents but also with school authorities as well.
The rights panel has sought a report from Sonepat district education officer to address the specific points like compliance with the Right to Education Act, existing disciplinary policy of the school, the administrative steps taken after the complaint, record of any prior complaints or disciplinary actions in the school. The panel also directed the district education officer to take note of status of registration of the case under the JJ Act, if any, specific steps taken to ensure child protection and safety in the school and measures adopted by the school and education department to promote positive parenting and child- centered disciplinary practices, in line with the principles of nurturing, non-violent discipline, and psychological well-being of children.
The three-member panel also sought a report from Sonepat commissioner of police regarding FIR registration (if any) following the news report dated September 14 and involvement and statements of school administration and others and any step taken under JJ Act.