6-year-old Indian student dies after being 'slapped' by teacher over incomplete homework
A six-year-old boy in Visakhapatnam, India, died after collapsing in the classroom when a teacher allegedly slapped him, authorities said.
The incident happened at a private school in Visakhapatnam, which is located in the southeastern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Security camera footage, verified by Al Jazeera, showed a female teacher holding the child by his clothes before slapping him in the face. The child then collapsed.
The boy was identified by local media as Pranay Tej.
According to his family, Pranay appeared healthy when he left home for school that morning. His father told NDTV India that the boy had insisted on going to school and showed no signs of illness.
The family later learned that Pranay had collapsed in the classroom. He was taken to King George Hospital, where he was declared dead.
Police have launched an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the child's death. The medical cause of his death has yet to be determined pending a post-mortem examination.
Pranay's family claimed that the teacher physically punished him over incomplete homework. They also alleged that other children had previously been subjected to physical punishment at the school. These allegations are also part of the ongoing investigation.
Andhra Pradesh Education and IT Minister Nara Lokesh said authorities are taking legal action against those responsible as well as the school management.
“As a father, I can’t get over what happened to little Pranay Tej. I cannot imagine the pain his parents are going through. Corporal punishment has no place in our schools. No child should ever be subjected to violence in the name of discipline,” Lokesh wrote on X.
The incident has drawn attention to the use of corporal punishment in Indian schools. India's education rules prohibit physical punishment and mental harassment of students, although cases involving corporal punishment continue to be reported.
