Class 6 Dalit student in UP locked up overnight in school toilet, blames teacher

A class 6 Dalit student was locked up for a night allegedly by his teacher in the school washroom. The incident took place in the Auraiya district of Uttar Pradesh.

Auraiya:In a bizarre incident, a government school teacher at a primary school in the Bidhuna tehsil area of the Auraiya district, locked a class six Dalit student in a toilet for 18 hours. The alleged incident is said to be from August 5, however, it came to the fore after a video related to it went viral.

Taking action in the incident, police arrested the accused teacher on Sunday after registering a case under relevant sections, said a police official. As per him, 11-year-old Purva Duje, a Dalit student in the Upper Primary School of village Piprauli Shiv went to school on August 5. Till evening when Purva didn't return home his family members got worried and started looking for his whereabouts, but failed to get any clue.

On the next day, when school reopened and the teacher opened the toilet door they found Purva. When the boy reached home, he narrated the ordeal. "I was about to leave the school when Vijay Kushwaha (accused teacher) stopped me and pushed me into the toilet around 2 pm and locked the door from outside. Everyone left the school, I kept screaming for help all night."

The child's father said that there are no houses near the school, so no one could hear his son's screams for help and he remained locked in the toilet for 18 hours. However, on the other side, it is being reported that the accused teacher had mistakenly locked the student, as he was unaware that the victim student was using the toilet. He had also allegedly asked the child to remain silent about the incident by giving money to him.

On the whole incident, Circle Officer, Mahendra Pratap Singh said that "the statements of the family members of the child have been recorded and a case has been registered against the teacher under various sections. Interrogation is going on by taking the accused teacher into custody."