Students will be transferred as the Department of Education requests the school to close (Ld)

UP slapgate: Students will be transferred as the Department of Education orders the school to close (Ld). Image source: IANS News

Muzaffarnagar, August 27: The education department of Uttar Pradesh has ordered the closure of the private school in Muzaffarnagar district, where earlier this week a teacher allegedly asked students to slap a classmate from the minority community, amid a pending investigation and the lack of a required confession.

The administration said that the students studying at the school will be transferred to other private schools nearby.

An alleged video of the incident surfaced online on Friday, in which the teacher is seen asking the students to slap the child, who is from the minority community.

The incident reportedly took place on Thursday at Neha Public School, located in Khobapur village under the jurisdiction of Mansurpur Police Station.

The department opened an investigation into the matter after the alleged video spread on social media. In the investigation, it was found that the school’s recognition ended a year ago.

Basic Education Officer Shubham Shukla said that in 2019, the school gained recognition for running K-5 classes. The recognition was offered provisionally for a period of three years, ending in 2022. After that, the school administration had to renew the recognition, but that was not done. The school, which operates without recognition, was ordered to be closed.

He added that further measures are being taken.

The police is also investigating the matter. A senior police official said, “We are in the process of recording the statements of the victim, his parents and the school teacher. If anyone is found guilty, we will take action against him.”

The boy’s father had said in an earlier statement that they had settled the matter after speaking with the school authorities and would not press charges against the school.

“The school has returned the fees and we will not send our child to that school,” said the victim’s father.