Manikganj Correspondent:
A second-grade student urinated in the classroom after being beaten by a teacher at a private kindergarten school in Sadar Upazila of Manikganj. His family has alleged that the student has been afraid to go to school since the incident.
The incident took place last Wednesday morning at Wonder Kids KG School located in Bangladesh Hat area of Garpara Union of Sadar Upazila.
The victim, Alif Mia (8), is a second-grade student of the school. He is the son of Shahin Mia, an expatriate from Tarail village of Shivalay Upazila. In the absence of his father, he is studying with his mother at his maternal grandparents’ house.
The child’s mother, Tanima Akter Bithi, alleged that Alif had a fight and scuffle with a classmate at school. At one stage, the classmate hit Alif on the nose. Later, Alif hit back with a pencil, causing a minor injury to the other student’s head.
Tanima Akhter said that after the incident, the school’s founder and headmaster Abu Said first took Alif to his room and disciplined him. Later, he came back to the classroom and beat him with a cane. This left marks on Alif’s back and hands. During the beating, he urinated in the classroom in fear.
She also said, “We want teachers to discipline their children. But there should be no such discipline that a child does not want to go to school out of fear. My son has not agreed to go to school since the incident. I want a fair trial.”
The family claims that after the incident, efforts were made to resolve the matter locally. However, the child’s mother has demanded action against the teacher involved in the incident.
Meanwhile, local Awami League leader and the child’s uncle, Nana Khabir Uddin Munshi, has been accused of behaving disrespectfully with journalists while trying to gather information. It is alleged that he invited journalists to a shop, closed the shutters and tried to attack them.
When asked about the allegations, headmaster Abu Said said, “Alif is a bit mischievous. There were allegations against him before. On the day of the incident, he hit another student with a pencil. While trying to discipline him, one of the blows was too hard. The incident was unexpected, but it was not intentional.”
It was not immediately known whether any action was taken by the school authorities or the local administration in the incident.