7 booked for thrashing principal of govt school

Tribune News Service 

Faridkot, December 6

A day after the principal of Government Senior Secondary School in Sarawan village of Faridkot was allegedly thrashed by some persons for taking help of some students in the plantation of flower saplings in the school, a large number of teachers staged a protest in front of the mini-secretariat here on Friday and demanded registration of a criminal case against the suspects and their arrest.

Following the protest, the police registered a case under Section 186, 353 and 509 of the IPC against Gurpreet Singh, Jaswinder Singh, Binder Singh, their father Makhan Singh and three unknown persons for assaulting a public servant and preventing him from discharging his duty.

A delegation of teachers, led by Sukhwinder Singh Sukhi of Democratic Teachers Front, Prem Chawla of Government School Teachers’ Union and Bhupinder Singh Brar, Principal of Government Senior Secondary School, Pangrain, met the Faridkot SSP, who assured them of earliest arrest of all accused.

It is alleged that the incident of thrashing happened on Thursday, when during the school time, school teachers and the principal were planting sapling of flowers in the school ground with the help of some students.

Accusing the school authorities of engaging students in child labour, Gurpreet Singh, one of the suspects, started videographing of school children helping the teachers in planting the flower saplings. When Birbal Singh, school principal, objected to this, Gurpreet Singh, his two brothers, their father and some other unidentified youth attacked the principal. 

They also uploaded a video of the incident on the social media, it is alleged. Birbal Singh, the victim, alleged that Gurpeet Singh has his house in the neighbourhood of the school and he has been annoyed with him for some time as the principal had declined to attest some unwarranted documents, which Gurpreet had brought to him.