Bhubaneswar: 'No student shall be subjected to physical punishment or mental harassment and whosoever contravenes this provision shall be liable for disciplinary action'. While many schools and colleges have adopted new laws banning corporal punishment, an incident of physical torture being meted out to students has cropped up, this time from a well-known private college in Bhubaneswar.
A video showing the warden of a boys' hostel of Gandhi Plus-II College here, assaulting students allegedly for scoring less marks in exams, has gone viral on social media.
Based on the video, the college authorities lodged a complaint at the police station against the concerned warden. The authorities however claimed that they have dismissed the warden for resorting to corporal punishment, adding that disciplinary action has been taken against him.
One of the students said, "Every time before the annual exams, our Sir (warden) made us understand how much it is important to score well in the exams citing that our parents have invested a lot of money in our education. But as we repeatedly failed to score good marks, Sir beat us that day."
"Yes, I admit that this has happened. But it's not a regular affair. We came to know about the incident after it went viral on August 17. Immediately we terminated him (warden)," said College Principal, Sudhansu Sekhar Maharana.
The response of the accused warden could not be obtained.
Meanwhile, police have registered an FIR under Section 341 and 323 of Indian Penal Code and launched a serious probe into the incident.
City DCP Anup Sahoo said, "Khandagiri police has registered a case under Juvenile Justice Act u/s 341, 323 IPC. The matter is being dealt with seriously as it violates the guidelines imposed on schools and colleges on assaults and ragging. Legal action will be taken. The accused hasn't been arrested so far. He will be nabbed soon."