The Supreme Court on Thursday, May 14, directed the Uttar Pradesh government to bear all educational expenses of the student who was humiliated and repeatedly slapped by his classmates on the orders of his teacher, only because he was a Muslim.
“We again clarify that the primary responsibility of meeting this expenditure is of the state. It will also be open for the state to persuade the school authorities to bear the expenses,” the apex court said while hearing a PIL filed by Tushar Gandhi, under the Right to Education Act.
The Supreme Court said the UP government can ask the school or a charitable organisation to cover the educational costs of the child.
A disturbing video in 2023 sent shockwaves in the country after a Class 2 Muslim student was repeatedly slapped by his classmates on the orders of his teacher, Tripta Tyagi, as a punishment for reportedly being inconsistent in his academics.
The incident occurred at Neha Public School located in Uttar Pradesh’s Muzaffarnagar district.
The video went massively viral on social media, with many social activists, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), and opposition party members condemning the teacher and calling it outright communal.
Tyagi, initially, did not feel ashamed and defended her actions. “They have made laws, but we need to control the children in schools. This is how we tackle them,” she said in an interview with NDTV. However, later, she apologised for her actions.
Subsequently, the school was ordered to shut down after the UP education department discovered it was running without required recognition. Tyagi was slapped with an FIR under sections 323 (punishment for voluntarily causing hurt) and 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace) — both non-cognisable offences.
