The Haldia school. Picture by Jahangir Badsa

Tamluk, July 13: A Class VIII student of a girls’ school in Haldia was allegedly asked by the headmistress to take off her skirt and wipe the classroom floor after she spilt water during recess yesterday.

When the 13-year-old girl, who is an asthma patient, refused to do so, she was beaten up with a stick by headmistress Sandhya Jana. She fell sick after returning home and refused to go to school today for fear that she might be beaten up again, her parents said. A classmate was also assaulted when she protested.

The parents of the two girls have lodged a complaint with the managing committee of the government-aided Dorkrishnagar Banitirtha Girls’ School in Sutahata.

Jana admitted that she had beaten up the girls but denied the allegation that she had asked any student to open her skirt and wipe the floor. “There are many students in the school. One needs to admonish them from time to time to maintain discipline. Yesterday, a girl had spilt water on the floor, causing inconvenience to others. I beat her up so that she does not repeat the mistake in the future. But I never asked her to open her skirt and mop the floor with it,” Jana, who will retire next year, said.

The girl, a student of section A, said she and two of her classmates had gone to section B during recess to have tiffin with friends.

“I was drinking water when I spilt some on the floor by mistake. The headmistress, who was passing by, got furious and reprimanded me for dirtying the classroom. She ordered me to take off my skirt and mop the floor. I was flummoxed and kept standing without knowing what to do,” the girl said.

“The headmistress got even more angry and demanded to know why I was not following orders. She beat me up mercilessly with a stick. I suffered injuries in my right elbow, waist, back and legs,” the student added.

When classmate Sushmita Bhowmik tried to rescue the girl, she too was beaten up. “I requested her not to beat up my friend. But the headmistress beat me up too,” Sushmita said.

After the headmistress left, life science teacher Reba Singh, whose class was scheduled after the tiffin break, took the injured girls to their classroom. “My elbow was swollen. The teacher applied a spray and gave me a homoeopathy medicine. Later, my friends took me home,” the girl said.

The secretary of the school managing committee, Tushar Maity, said he had received the written complaints of the parents of the assaulted girls. Maity, who is also a Trinamul panchayat samiti member, said: “Grave allegations have been made against the headmistress. We have called a meeting of the managing committee next week. A panel will be formed to probe the allegations. If the headmistress is found guilty, we will request the school authorities to take action against her. We won’t tolerate mental or physical harassment of students.”

The mother of the girl who was allegedly asked to clean the floor, said: “My daughter has asthma since childhood. We have never raised our hand on her. She was beaten up mercilessly by the headmistress yesterday. She fell ill after returning home. She had high fever. Today, she refused to go to school because she fears she might be assaulted again.”

The girl’s father, a casual worker at the Haldia Refinery, said no teacher or school employee came to console the girl today. “We are waiting to see what action the school authorities take against the headmistress,” he said.