Government school students in Bengaluru forced to clean toilets; headmistress suspended

Parents of students expressed outrage and staged a protest outside the school campus demanding strict action against its administration.

Published Dec 22, 2023 | 5:57 PMUpdated Dec 22, 2023 | 5:57 PM

Karnataka school

Close on the heels of an incident in Kolar where school students were “forced” to clean the soak pit, another incident of pupils being allegedly asked to clean toilets at a government school in Bengaluru has come to light.

In a viral video, some of the students were purportedly seen cleaning the toilet at Andrahalli in the city.

Following the incident, parents of students expressed outrage and staged a protest outside the school campus demanding strict action against its administration.

Related: NCPCR seeks probe on incident of students forced to do manual scavenging

Headmistress suspended

Acting swiftly, the Education Department suspended the headmistress of the school, officials said.

Reacting to the incident, Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar told reporters that he had called a meeting at 3 pm to inquire about the incident and assured strict action in the matter.

“I have called for a meeting at 3 pm. I will inquire about it and get the actual report. There was another similar incident in the past and we have taken legal action against it,” he said.

Noting that children should be raised properly and made strong, Shivakumar said there are arrangements to clean toilets in schools.

“We shouldn’t misuse the children. Earlier NSS, Seva Dal camps use to give training for kids to clean the garden, planting the saplings but we haven’t given anyone permission to rope in children for cleaning the toilets,” he pointed out.

‘Shocking and deplorable’

Karnataka Primary and Secondary Education Minister Madhu Bangarappa condemned the incident and termed it “shocking” and “deplorable”.

“… there is no doubt that we will take the strictest action as per law. Further, I will ensure that such incidents don’t repeat and will ensure that all action is taken by our department,” he said.

Earlier this month, the principal and two staff members of a school in Kolar district were suspended over allegations that some students were made to clean the soak pit on its premises.

Apex child rights body National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) has directed the Karnataka police to probe the reported incident where six students, including three Dalit students, were allegedly forced to clean a septic tank used for human waste disposal.

The NCPCR, in a letter addressed to the Kolar Deputy Commissioner, expressed deep concern over the gravity of the reported incident and sought an action taken report within three days from the date of receipt of the communication.

Related: Principal held for engaging 6 students in manual scavenging

Kolar case and arrest

The school principal and an art teacher were arrested by the Kolar police on Monday for forcing students, including those from Dalit families, to engage in manual scavenging. A separate POSCO case has been registered against the art teacher for videographing girl students while they were at their hostel, intruding on their privacy.

The case was registered by the Masthi police following a complaint from the Social Welfare Department Assistant Director V Shivakumar alleging that the school authorities engaged six students for manual scavenging at the residential school’s hostel.

Those named were five members of the school’s staff, including the principal, identified as Bharathamma.

Bharathamma and the school’s art teacher Muniyappa were, after arrest, produced before a magistrate who remanded them in judicial custody.

The officials also learnt that around three of the six students who were engaged in manual scavenging work belonged to Dalit families.

(With PTI inputs)

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