Delhi school teacher chopped off Class V student's hair with scissors, tossed her from balcony

The accused teacher has been suspended and arrested; the 11-year-old girl sustained a fracture in her facial bone
Image for representational purpose only | Pic: EdexLive
Image for representational purpose only | Pic: EdexLive

A school teacher in Delhi was suspended and arrested after throwing a Class V girl from the first floor balcony of a municipal school on Friday, December 16. The incident occurred at the Prathmik Vidyalaya in central Delhi's Model Basti area.

According to a report by PTI, the girl, aged around 11, sustained a fracture in her facial bone. The accused teacher also hit the girl with a pair of scissors. "The teacher locked herself inside a classroom with students and violently threw water bottles before she picked up the girl, chop her hair and tossed her from the balcony. The incident took place at around 11 am at the Delhi Nagar Nigam Balika Vidyalaya," said the police.

The accused teacher, identified as Geeta Rani Deshwal (26), has been arrested, and the motive behind the incident is not clear yet, added the police, according to PTI. The police also said that papers, books and bags lay scattered in the classroom as students ran out of the classroom in panic, as she allegedly even threatened to harm some of them.

Speaking to PTI, the girl's father said, "We received information from the school about the assault. The teacher picked up my daughter and threw her from the balcony. She also cut my daughter's hair." 

"We don't know what led to the incident. Why did this teacher do this to my daughter? I never received any complaint against my daughter. What happened today was very shocking and I fear sending my child to school again," the victim's father told PTI over phone. He alleged that the teacher allegedly beats up other children and even uses belts to harass students. However, there was no confirmation from the police of these allegations.

A senior doctor at the Hindu Rao Hospital told PTI that the girl, aged around 11, has suffered "small injuries in the scalp region." "We conducted a CT scan of her skull and brain, and an ultrasound which was normal. But, there is swelling on her face, so we repeated the CT, and found that she has sustained a fracture in a facial bone. Hence, the patient has been referred to the maxillofacial department of the Safdarjung Hospital," he said. The girl, otherwise, is stable and further treatment is on, he added.

The accused teacher, Deshwal, was suspended by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, hours after the incident on Friday. When asked if the teacher harmed any other student, DCP (Central Delhi) Shweta Chauhan said that no such information or complaint has come to the fore so far. "One more teacher who tried to stop the accused from doing so was pushed by the accused but it is not confirmed if she sustained injuries when she went to intervene," the DCP old PTI. Police, however, didn't give details as to how the door of the classroom, which was locked from inside, was opened. Asked whether the teacher is mentally-ill, Chauhan told reporters that doctors can confirm this.

According to the police, the accused suffered a miscarriage in October 2021 when she was five months pregnant. Her husband lives in a Haryana village and is a truck driver. Soon after the incident, a huge crowd gathered at the school in central Delhi's Model Basti area. Parents of many students gathered outside the school and lodged a protest. The police reached the spot and brought the situation under control.

Some of the victim's classmates also alleged that the teacher threatened to harm them. A parent of another student of Class V in the same school alleged that the "headmaster did not even speak" to the parents about the incident and questioned the education system of MCD schools. She also repeated allegations of the teacher assaulting other students in the school, and added that no higher authorities had visited the school for an inspection. 

A team of the Delhi Commission For Protection of Child Rights visited the girl in Hindu Rao Hospital. The child rights body directed the local SHO to inquire into the matter under serious violation and submit an action taken report by December 20. Delhi Commission for Women chief Swati Maliwal demanded strict punishment for the accused teacher, reported PTI. 

In a statement, the MCD said all the tests and scan reports of the girl are "normal, and the child is safe, stable and responding well." "The child has been referred to the Safdarjung Hospital for further management. MCD will bear all expenditure on the treatment of the child. The teacher, Geeta Rani (appointed in 2019) has been detained by the police. MCD has also suspended the teacher with immediate effect. Further investigation in the matter is being done and a departmental inquiry will be conducted expeditiously," the civic body said.

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