Ips: Muzaffarnagar slapping: Incident in school should shake UP govt conscience, says Supreme Court

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday took strong exception to the UP police not invoking relevant provisions of law in connection with the Muzaffarnagar incident in which a schoolboy was allegedly slapped by his classmates on the instruction of a teacher for belonging to a particular religion and said it should have shaken the “conscience” of the state.
A bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Pankaj Mithal said quality education cannot be provided in educational institutions if students are targeted for being part of a community and held that the state government had “prima facie” failed to implement the law.
Voicing displeasure over the shoddy probe, the court directed the UP government to appoint a senior IPS officer within a week to probe the case and file status report in the court.

Questioning the conduct of the state police in handling the case, the bench said FIR was not only filed after a long delay but it also did not mention that the boy was assaulted allegedly because of his religion, as mentioned by the victim’s father in his statement. The court rebuffed the contention of additional solicitor general KM Nataraj who submitted on behalf of state government that the communal angle was blown out of proportion in the case.
“This is a very serious issue. Teacher telling students to hit a classmate because he belongs to a particular community! Is this quality education? State must take responsibility of education of the child. If the allegations are true, this should shake the conscience of the state,” the bench said.
“We have serious objection to the manner in which FIR is registered,” it said and pointed out that the victim’s father in the first complaint alleged that the teacher was making objectionable comments against a particular religion but the same allegation was missing in the FIR.
The bench said it was a very serious case as a teacher gave mandate to beat the child because of his religion. The bench said the alleged act was not only a criminal offence but also violation of fundamental rights of the child and also Right to Education Act and Rules framed by the state under the Act.
“After a long delay an FIR has been registered on September 6, 2023, alleging commission of offences under Section 75 of Juvenile Justice Act, 2015, and Sections 323 (voluntarily causing hurt) and 503 (criminal intimidation) of the IPC. Petitioner contends offence is also of proviso 2 of Section 75 of JJ Act and 153A (promoting enmity between different groups) of IPC. The probe shall be supervised by a senior police officer nominated by the state government to look into whether these two offences deserve to be invoked,” it ordered.
The court directed the state government to ensure that proper counselling is extended to the boy as well as his classmates by a professional counsellor. It also sought a report from the state on the facilities it will extend to the victim and steps taken by it to protect his family.
The court was hearing a PIL filed by Mahatma Gandhi’s grandson Tushar Gandhi who sought its intervention. Opposing his petition, the state told the bench that he should not come holding a placard that he is the grandson of Mahatma. The bench, however, clarified that if the state had a problem with the locus of the petitioner, it can take it as suo motu petition.
The court posted the case for further hearing to October 30 and directed the state to file report by that date.
Tushar Gandhi in his petition pleaded that police must invoke all applicable criminal law provisions and take consequent actions, including arrest of the school teacher.