Mumbai school trustee booked for assaulting over 70 students

The Saki Naka police on Friday booked a 62-year-old school trustee for assaulting more than 70 students with a wooden scale. On Saturday, the police registered an FIR against Pushkaraj Subedar, the trustee of Samata Vidyamandir School at Parerawadi, Saki Naka, on the basis of a complaint filed by a student Afrin Shahjahan Khan (15).

Pushkaraj Subedar alleged that despite having a half day, the students stayed back and were disturbing others. So she hit them

"We have registered an FIR against Subedar under Section 324 (voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous weapons) of the Indian Penal Code," said Prasanna More, senior inspector, Saki Naka police station. According to the police, the school had organised an open day and parents'-teacher's meeting on September 26 from 11 am to 1 pm.

A copy of the letter that was written on behalf of the school to the Saki Naka Police to lodge a complaint against the teacher

More than 70 students of Class six, seven and 10 were sitting in a hall where the parents'-teachers' meeting was being held. Subedar alleged that the students were creating a ruckus and in order to teach them a lesson, she started hitting them with a wooden scale. The students' pleas went unheard.

After their efforts to dissuade Subedar from hitting the kids failed, the parents of over 35 kids approached local social worker Salim Pathan. He, along with eight students, went to Saki Naka police station, to file a complaint. The Police sent the kids for a medical check-up and finally registered an FIR against Subedar on Saturday.

The other side
Subedar, on the other hand, admitted of hitting the kids but maintained that she resorted to the stern action only to teach them a lesson. "I have been a teacher since 40 years. I hit the students as they were creating a ruckus. They had been given a half day but rather than going home, they were disturbing everyone. One of the school teachers is trying to malign me," she alleged.u00a0