La Martiniere repents, abolishes caning
Kolkata: The Board of Governors of Kolkata's La Martiniere School, which is under fire in the Rouvanjit Rawla suicide case, has revised the school's rules and regulations and called for major penalties in case of corporal punishment.
According to the new rule corporal punishment Is liable to disciplinary action with the minimum penalty for violation of the rules being suspension and the maximum penalty being dismissal from service with disqualification for future employment. The school in the next 10 days will also form a redressal committee comprising members of the board, teachers, parents and educationists. The redressal committee can be approached by students and the parents for any allegations or violations of service rules. Meanwhile, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) investigating the Rouvanjit suicide case has recommended suspension of La Martiniere School Principal and the three teachers involved in caning and humiliating the child.
The NCPCR also wants further investigation by the police to establish the chain of events between the caning and the suicide of Rouvanjit as it did not find any evidence to show that the boy was tortured at home. According to the commission's report Rouvanjit had a normal family life.
Sources say NCPCR has given the following recommendations: 1) IPC section 88 and 89 should be repealed. Section 88 says that any act not intended to cause death, done in good faith and with the consent of the other party cannot be labelled as an offence even if it leads to death or injury.
2) Penal provisions should be included in the Right to Education Act (RTE). Section 17 of the RTE prohibits corporal punishment and provides for disciplinary action in accordance with the service regulations. Penal provisions should be included to identify what kind of disciplinary action should be taken.
3) RTE identifies a child as a male or female within the age group of 6 to 14 years. This needs to be modified to include children under 6 and upto 16.
4) It has recommended suspension of the Principal Sunirmal Chakravarthi and the three teachers involved.
5) NCPCR wants further investigation by the police to establish the chain of events between the caning and the suicide.
The 150-year-old school has been in the eye of the storm over the suicide of a 13-year-old Rawla, who killed himself on February 12, 2010 after being allegedly caned and humiliated by the school principal and some other teachers. Rouvanjit's father Ajay Rawla registered an FIR against the principal and four teachers for abetting his son's suicide.
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