A group of Class 12 students have ruthlessly beaten up a Class 9 student and damaged his right ear drum at the Navodaya Vidyalaya in Tudipaju of Kandhamal district in Odisha.
After being referred by the district headquarters hospital, the injured child was shifted to MKCG Medical College and Hospital in Berhampur on Wednesday night. Parents of the victim alleged that it may be a case of ragging.
On Thursday, a team of Kandhamal district administration that included Additional District Magistrate (ADM) Pradipta Kumar Sahani, sub-collector Nimai Charan Sutar and District Child Protection Officer (DCPO) Rashmita Karan, reached the Navodaya Vidyalaya to enquire about the incident.
After enquiry, they directed the principal of the institution to take strict action against the erring Class 12 students. “The students who were involved in this attack will be initially expelled from school for 15 days,” said Ms Karan. The principal has been directed to formulate a proper system through which all information related to happenings in the hostel could reach authorities as early as possible.
As per findings of the team, the incident had occurred in the hostel on August 11 during lunch hour. A student of Class 12 had alleged that Rs. 2000 belonging to him had been stolen by the Class 9 student. A group of Class 12 students then physically tortured the boy to make him confess his involvement in the alleged theft.
As per the rules, no student of the school is allowed to possess cash on the hostel premises, but some students secretly keep money with them.