Outrage in India after teacher asks students to slap Muslim boy for getting his multiplication tables wrong
- Footage of Thursday’s incident shows the teacher in Uttar Pradesh state instructing students to hit the seven-year-old, because he got his multiplication tables wrong
- Rights groups say hate crimes against India’s large Muslim minority have been on the rise since Hindu-nationalist PM Narendra Modi took office in 2014
Indian authorities vowed on Saturday to take action after a primary school teacher ordered her pupils to take turns slapping a Muslim classmate, with footage of the incident stoking outrage online.
Rights groups say hate crimes and violence against India’s large Muslim minority have been on the rise since Hindu-nationalist Prime Minister Narendra Modi took office in 2014.
Footage of Thursday’s incident shows the teacher of a private school in Uttar Pradesh state instructing students to hit the seven-year-old, ostensibly because he got his multiplication tables wrong.
“Why are you hitting him so lightly? Hit him hard,” she is heard telling the children, as the boy stands crying.
“Start hitting him on the waist … His face is turning red, hit him on the waist instead,” she added.
Police superintendent Satyanarayan Prajapat said the footage had been verified.
“Departmental action will be taken against the teacher,” he said in a video posted on social media.