Teacher sentenced to 3 yrs jail for slapping student, causing hearing loss
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Gandhinagar: A Gandhinagar court has sentenced a school teacher to three years and three months in prison for slapping a Class 9 student over unfinished homework, an act that ruptured her left eardrum and caused long-term hearing impairment.
Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Himanshu Choudhary, in a judgment delivered on January 30, held that the offence involved abuse of authority by a teacher, resulting in “longstanding hearing impairment” and other long-term medical consequences for the 14-year-old girl. The court noted that even after four-and-a-half years, the victim was still undergoing medication for the injury.
The teacher, Parulben Patel, was convicted under section 325 of the Indian Penal Code and section 75 of the Juvenile Justice Act for assaulting the child and voluntarily causing grievous hurt. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 50,000, which is to be paid as compensation to the victim.
According to the prosecution, the incident occurred on January 1, 2020, at Baa Shri Vasantkuvarba School, a private institution in Gandhinagar. The teacher, angered over the student not completing her homework, slapped her three times on the left ear, causing perforation of the eardrum and grievous hurt.
Following a complaint by the girl’s family, Sector-21 police registered an FIR against the teacher two days after the incident.
In her defence, Patel claimed that the student was not doing her homework and acted on her whims, and alleged that the parents filed a false case against her. The court, however, relied on medical testimony and the history recorded by the treating doctor, which corroborated the charges.
The teacher’s lawyer requested leniency, citing her alleged cancer diagnosis. The court, however, observed that the offence involved abuse of authority, serious physical injury to a minor, and long-term medical consequences. “Such factors outweigh mitigating circumstances. Grant of probation would defeat the object of deterrence and child protection. Moreover, no documentary evidence in support of the cancer ailment has been brought on record,” the judgment stated.
This case highlights the judiciary’s strict stance against physical abuse by teachers and the emphasis on child protection.
With IANS inputs