In an incident of caste-based discrimination in Tamil Nadu's Tirupur, the District Education Department suspended the headmaster and science teacher of the school on Thursday, April 25 reported The New Indian Express.
The incident took place in a government school at Karungalivalsu in Kolathupalayam in Dharapuram on Tuesday, April 23, where two girls, aged 11 and 12, belonging to the Scheduled Caste (SC) community were allegedly forced by the school headmistress to clean toilets.
Students engaged in cleaning toilets for several months
The Class VI students were allegedly engaged in the task for the past several months. The incident was brought to attention when a resident captured the girls' statements and circulated them on social media in Dharapuram on Tuesday morning, April 23.
An official from Tiruppur District Administration told The New Indian Express that an inquiry was conducted in the presence of the minors.
Headmaster and teacher claimed ignorance
The children claimed that they willfully cleaned their toilets in the school. This was in contrast to their declaration in the video. The headmaster and teacher claimed that they did not force the girls to clean the toilets and also claimed that they were unaware of the situation.
According to The New Indian Express, the top officials refused to acknowledge their claim as it indicated their negligence in the monitoring and hence, were suspended for an indefinite period.
Meanwhile, the inquiry process is still ongoing.
