Four private school staff booked for mentally harassing Class 2 student in Kanpur

An alleged case of mental harassment of an eight-year-old student at a private school here has came to light after the child started showing signs of being disturbed, by crying in his sleep and writing ''help'' in his books and the walls of his home, police said on Friday.

A case was registered against four staff members of the school at Sen Paschim Para on December 23 for allegedly mentally harassing the Class 2 boy after accusing him of stealing a pen, they said.

The FIR, based on a complaint from the boy's mother, has been filed against the school's director Devraj Singh Rajawat, principal Anuprit Rawal, and teachers Sangeeta Malik and Swatantra Agnihotri, police said.

In her complaint, the child's mother alleged that her son was falsely accused of stealing a pen and mentally harassed at school. She said her son was summoned to the school on December 12 over an incident that occurred on November 28, a day he did not attend regular classes.

The family said they noticed behavioural changes in the child, who became withdrawn and woke up crying at night, saying, ''Ma'am, I didn't take the pen.'' He also began writing the word ''Help'' in his books and the walls of his home, the family said.

The complaint also alleged that the child was coerced into recording a ''confession video''. The school refused to share CCTV footage and instead, pressured the family to pay for the pen, it said.

Police said they have issued notices to the accused, but they failed to appear in the station.

''An FIR has been registered and the matter is under investigation,'' said Station Officer Pradeep Kumar Singh.

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