Saha at home. Picture by Anirban Choudhury

Alipurduar, April 2: An HS candidate punched an invigilator in the nose repeatedly when he caught the boy cheating today, but the teacher will not file a complaint to save his “academic career”.

Bibek Saha, a chemistry teacher, caught Nibash Shingho Roy copying from a sheet of paper when the students of BK High School were taking their philosophy test at his institution, McWilliam High School.

He snatched the paper and the answer script from Nibash despite his protests. When Saha refused to hand them back, Nibash repeatedly hit him on the face, drawing blood.

Alerted by the commotion, other teachers rushed to the first-floor hall and took Saha away with blood dripping from his nose.

He was taken to a hospital and then to his house in Suryanagar after first aid.

Headmaster Sudhangshu Biswas had called police and the Alipurduar subdivisional officer by then.

Saha said he would not lodge a police complaint.

The headmaster said: “When I asked him (Saha) about the incident, he requested me not to press charges against Nibash. He said any action against the boy would ruin his academic career.”

When The Telegraph contacted Saha, he refused comment. “Please talk to the school authorities,” he said.

Nibash, who lives with his mother in the Sonapur area of the town, said: “I still don’t understand why I hit the teacher. I’m extremely sorry for what I did.

“I could not finish this exam. I don’t know whether I’d be allowed to write the environment science paper.”

His father, a small farmer, had died a couple of years ago.

Biswas said he was proud of the teacher for showing mercy on an errant student, but added that letting Nibash go scot-free might encourage other students to indulge in such behaviour in the future.

“The boy has admitted in writing that he had copied from a sheet of paper in the examination hall and assaulted the teacher who tried to prevent him from doing so,” the headmaster said.

The teachers of BK were “surprised” when they heard about Nibash’s conduct. “They were surprised. The boy is known to be mild mannered in school,” said Biswas.