Ahmedabad teacher, principal suspended after corporal punishment video goes viral

A private school in Ahmedabad on Tuesday suspended its principal and a teacher after a video of the teacher assaulting a Class 10 student went viral on social media platforms.

The video of the corporal punishment, captured by a CCTV camera, had prompted the district education officer (DEO) of Ahmedabad city to issue a notice to the Madhav Public School at Vatva.

The footage showed the teacher, Abhishek Patel, twisting the student’s arm, pulling his hair, slamming him against a wall, slapping him nearly a dozen times, and pushing him to the ground.

The DEO Rohit Chaudhari said, “The school authorities have responded to our notice and said that they have taken necessary action including suspension of the teacher. Also, the school said that the principal has been removed as he did not report the matter and was trying to brush it under the carpet.”

Patel was also detained by the police at Vatva station following a complaint lodged by the student’s parents, he added.

In a separate incident, the DEO also ordered an inquiry at Divine Gurukul School in Hathijan, Ahmedabad, where a student reportedly suffered eardrum damage due to a teacher’s corporal punishment.