Kamal Ghorui
VADODARA: A woman schoolteacher was allegedly slapped by a student before the entire class when she asked him why he was late for an exam. To make matters worse, the student’s father and others allegedly threatened her to stop her from filing a complaint. The alleged offence occurred in Shehra town of Panchmahal district on Jan 24, but the teacher mustered the courage to file a case only on Tuesday.
Police arrested the 18-year-old student on Thursday and carried out a reconstruction of the crime. The reconstruction drew public attention to the incident, which otherwise went unnoticed beyond the school and the parties involved.The student was to take his Class 12 pre-board exam. The woman teacher was the supervisor of his classroom. When he arrived late, the teacher asked him the reason for his tardiness.In the FIR registered at Shehra police station, the teacher stated that the youth said that nobody, even at his home, questioned him and then slapped her. He then allegedly pushed her and she managed to stay on her feet only by grabbing the smartboard. The youth then left the classroom. The entire episode was captured by the CCTV camera in the room.The teacher went to the in-charge principal and the boy’s father was called. The father apologized to the teacher and it was decided that further action would be decided on Jan 27, when the full-time principal returned. On Jan 27, the student, his father and 20 others came to the school.The teacher alleged that the group threatened her saying that she lived alone in the town and would face dire consequences. The teacher is originally from Navsari. She said she was initially scared but eventually decided to register an offence.Shehra police inspector Ankur Chaudhary said the youth does not have prior offences registered against him. His father is a state transport bus driver.
