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This Article is From Jul 17, 2010

Kolkata school booked for corporal punishment

Kolkata: Even as the dust is yet to settle over the suicide of La Martiniere student Rouvan Rawla, another Kolkata school, St James, has come under the scanner for corporal punishment.

The father of a Class 8 student has filed a case against the principal and five teachers on charges of mentally and physically abusing his son. But the school says the student's complaint is motivated.

The Principal told NDTV that the charges are " totally false, fabricated and smacks of malafide intent."  Mr. TH Ireland added, " It's not he but (Sidharth) we who are the victims. He has a history of indiscipline, he has been warned on several occassions, his parents have been called in, and finally, on the 12th he beat up a boy so serverely,  that his parents threatened to take the school to court, if we did not take action (against Sidharth).". (Watch: School denies allegation, says student a 'bully')

Meanwhile, Siddharth David Saha maintans that he was badly humiliated and beaten by his teachers on July 14, actions that finally forced him to quit.  "No teacher was talking to me. I had put my head down but one teacher pulled my hair, slapped me and said I was a dog. 'Why did you come to school...you've got a TC?' They told me get lost from here....get out of school. At last I said I can't take this anymore. I told Papa please take me out of school otherwise I will die. I don't want to live anymore," said Siddharth.

"After what happened to the La Martiniere boy, I was scared of something similar happening to my boy. I don't want them to harass children. All schools must take lesson," said Rajesh Saha, Siddharth's father.

The police have booked a case for voluntarily causing hurt and criminal intimidation.

Kolkata is still searching for answers in the case of Rouvanjit Rawla, the 12-year-old who committed suicide in February, days after being humiliated and caned by the principal of his school, the prestigious La Martiniere School for Boys.Rawla's death provoked an angry debate on the issue of corporal punishment in schools.(Rouvan suicide: School bans corporal punishment)

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