Six-year-old whistles in class, teacher asks him to remove pants

NAVI MUMBAI: A teacher from a well-known private school in Navi Mumbai was arrested on Wednesday for allegedly asking a Class 1 student to remove his trousers in front of his classmates, as punishment for whistling in class.

The teacher was released on bail soon after.

The police said the incident took place on July 14, but the sixyear-old child had not spoken about it to his parents. On Tuesday evening, when the child’s mother went to the school to pick up her son, one of the other parents told her about the incident.

The child’s father then registered a complaint at the Kalamboli police station.

The complaint says the class teacher “humiliated” his son by removing his trousers and making him stand in his undergarments in front of the other students.

“The teacher has been charged under section 75 of the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015 for cruelty towards a child,” said Machindra Khade, senior inspector, Kalamboli police station.

While the child’s parents and

the teacher refused to speak about the incident, the parents’ advocate RK Patil said the teacher was released on a bond of ₹15,000.

The school’s principal said there was a government regulation regarding punishing children in school.

“We completely abide by this order. We have always told our teachers to treat students with care,” the principal said.

The principal said the teacher had not yet been suspended, but the school management will take appropriate action.