Kolkata school headmistress arrested for beating up students

Kolkata: The headmistress of a primary school here was arrested on Tuesday for allegedly tying up and beating up two class 2 students, police said.

"Dipika Ghosh, the headmistress of Rajendra Sikshasadan primary school in south Kolkata, has been arrested for allegedly tying two girl students to a chair and severely beating them," said an officer from Jadavpur police station.

Earlier in the day, the parents of the affected students demonstrated at the school premises along with other guardians accusing the headmistress of brutality against their children. They also lodged a police complaint against Ghosh.

"The headmistress tied my daughter to a chair and constantly beat her up when she refused to mop a table in the classroom. She also threatened to give her electric shock if the incident is disclosed to anyone," the mother of one of the beaten students alleged.

The fellow teachers in the school also pointed finger at Ghosh for being involved in repeated instances of physical violence towards the students.

"The headmistress has a history of physically abusing the students. We have heard that she did similar things in her previous school and was sent to this school as a punishment transfer," claimed a teacher from the school.

"We found her beating up a few students on Friday. On Monday she thrashed two students so severely that they had to be taken to the doctor," she alleged.

The accused teacher, however, refuted the allegations claiming she has fallen prey to a conspiracy by a section of teachers in the school and guardians.

"I love the students very much. I did not beat them up. This is a conspiracy against me by a section of the teachers here to drive me away from the school. They have also involved some guardians in the conspiracy against me," Ghosh claimed.