Child rights commission to take up case of dead schoolgirl

New Delhi, April 17 (IANS) A shocked child rights commission has decided to take up the case of the 11-year-old schoolgirl who died Friday afternoon after her teacher allegedly beat her and forced her to stand out in the sun.

'It is shocking how a young girl was punished so brutally that she lost her life. We are going to ask the school and other authorities concerned for an explanation and also to submit a report on the same,' Amod Kanth, chairperson of the Delhi Commission for Protection of Child Rights (DCPCR), told IANS.

Shano Khan slipped into a coma Wednesday after being punished by her class teacher Manju in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) primary school in Narela in outer Delhi for failing to recite the alphabet.

However, the police did not register a case against the teacher since they were waiting for the medical report from the hospital.

Sandhya Bajaj, member of the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), condemned the incident and said they will take strict action against the authorities after reviewing the medical report and the report of the enquiry set up by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD).

'At the moment we are awaiting the medical report of the girl and the enquiry report of the MCD. After that we will take action. This incident is absolutely condemnable,' Bajaj told IANS.

Bajaj said the incident was a reflection of the blatant manner in which laws were being flouted everywhere.

'Corporal punishment in schools has been banned but it continues to persist everywhere. Therefore there has to be more awareness and counselling amongst teachers and others in this regard,' she added.

Calling the incident 'shameful', National Commission for Women (NCW) chairperson Girija Vyas said: 'We have taken cognizance of the matter and have send our team to probe into the matter, after which a report will be submitted.'