The Uttar Pradesh government on Friday informed the Supreme Court that its chargesheet is ready in a case concerning the slapping of a Muslim boy in Muzaffarnagar by his classmates on the orders of their teacher, who peppered the abuse with communal remarks against the child.
Appearing before a Bench headed by Justice A.S. Oka, the State counsel said the government was awaiting sanction to file the chargesheet in the trial court.
The court also directed the State to file an affidavit on the application made by the boy’s father that the government was not helping with his study materials, books and uniform.
The affidavit has to be filed in two weeks. The court scheduled the case for hearing on May 10.
On April 15, the Bench had asked the State government to clarify measures taken to prosecute the case against the teacher.
The court is monitoring the case and had made sure in March that the State government took expert help from agencies such as HAQ, Muskan and Childline in counselling the child and his classmates after the traumatic episode.
The court’s intervention had led the child to be transferred out of the school, which was really operating from the teacher’s house — to a proper one. The State had agreed to pitch in with the child’s educational expenses.
However, the boy’s father had even in the last hearing on April 15 complained that the State had turned unresponsive.
Blames State
The court has consistently blamed the State government for its failure to provide a safe environment, recognised schools and qualified teachers for children in accordance with the Right to Education Act.
The Act mandates quality, free and compulsory education for children up to 14 years without any discrimination on the basis of caste, creed or gender.
The court had flagged the slapping incident as a “very serious” and direct violation of Article 21A (the fundamental right of a child to free and compulsory education) of the Constitution, the Right to Education Act and even the Uttar Pradesh Rules which task the local authorities to ensure that children do not face discrimination in classrooms.
The court said it would separately take up the larger issue of the implementation of the Right to Education Act in Uttar Pradesh.
