Ramani (26), a temporary teacher at Mallipattinam Government Higher Secondary School near Thanjavur, was stabbed to death on the premises of the school by an acquaintance allegedly for refusing to marry him without her parents' consent.
Published Nov 22, 2024 | 12:33 PM ⚊ Updated Nov 22, 2024 | 12:33 PM
Ramani, the teacher who was stabbed to death.
Teachers’ unions and political parties in Tamil Nadu on Thursday, 21 November, condemned the murder of a temporary teacher in the Thanjavur district and demanded an immediate introduction of the Occupational Safety and Health Act.
Ramani (26), a temporary teacher at Mallipattinam Government Higher Secondary School near Thanjavur, was stabbed to death on the premises of the school on Wednesday by an acquaintance allegedly for refusing to marry him without her parents’ consent.
Madankumar (30) stabbed Ramani at around 10 am on Wednesday when she was resting in the teachers’ room in the school. The fellow teachers caught Madankumar and handed him over to the police.
Ramani died on the way to the Pattukottai Government Hospital. The police recorded the arrest of Madankumar and are further probing the incident.
Leader of the Opposition in the state Assembly and AIADMK General Secretary Edappadi Palaniswami, Amma Makkal Munneetra Kazhagam (AMMK) General Secretary TTV Dinakaran, Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) President Anbumani Ramadoss, BJP state President K Annamalai and others strongly condemned the murder of Ramani.
Various organisations including the Tamil Nadu Primary School Teachers’ Alliance, Indian School Teachers’ Federation, Tamil Nadu Primary School Teachers’ Alliance, and the Tamil Nadu Teachers’ Progress Association have condemned and demanded the immediate introduction of the Occupational Safety and Health Act.
In 2022 alone, 9,207 crimes against women, including assault on teachers, were registered in the state, according to data released by the Tamil Nadu Crime Records Bureau.
On 20 September 2024, at the Vennavalkudi Government Higher Secondary School near Alangudi in the Pudukkottai district, a man named Murugesan used inappropriate language, whistled, and verbally abused the teacher and students in the class.
When confronted, Murugesan grabbed the teacher, Thirunavukkarasu, by the shirt, dragged him, beat him, kicked him, and threatened to kill him, saying, “I will not let you go without killing you.”
On 8 August 2024, a former student of the Government Higher Secondary School in Navalai village near Kambainallur in Dharmapuri district went to the school with some friends and attacked Sivasakthi, who works as a zoology teacher, with sticks.
On 2 April 2024, more than ten individuals, including management committee members and school teachers, went door-to-door to distribute notices aimed at raising awareness about enrolling students in government schools at the Panchayat Union Primary School in Devala, near Gudalur in the Nilgiris district.
During this program, DMK executives attacked Tamilselvan, a temporary teacher. The injured teacher was later admitted to a government hospital for treatment.
On 3 January 2024, an incident involving Uma, a middle school teacher at Laguvampatty Panchayat Union near Murungapatti under Veerapandi Union in Salem district, caused a stir when she was attacked by a local man named Thambidurai.
On 8 August 2023, a teacher named Mohan Babu at the Government High School in Guruvarajakandigai village near Gummidipoondi in Thiruvallur district beat a student with a stick after the student spoke rudely in the classroom. This resulted in swelling in the student’s hands and feet.
Outraged by the incident, the student’s parents and villagers besieged the school, attacked the teacher, tore his shirt, and hit him with sandals.
On 21 March 2023, at a government-aided Hindu Primary School in Keelanambipuram of the Thoothukudi district, a student’s mother, father, and grandfather chased and attacked a teacher named Bharat after he had allegedly asked the student to play more carefully. The attackers also targeted the school’s headmaster Guruvammal, who attempted to intervene.
Following the increase in instances of attacks against teachers in the state, Tamil Nadu Primary School Teachers’ Alliance Tiruppur District Secretary Jayaraj said, “The Teachers’ Alliance condemns the incident where a man stabbed and murdered a teacher inside the school premises”.
“Such acts of entering the school premises, threatening, attacking and killing teachers are taking place in various places, which is creating a sense of fear among teachers.”
“Such acts can also affect the future of school students. Therefore, appropriate legal action should be taken against those involved in the crime. The occupational safety of teachers should be ensured,” he said.
Tamil Nadu Teachers’ Progress Association President K Thiyagarajan said, “The news that Ramani, a teacher who was appointed and working at Mallipattinam Government Higher Secondary School in Thanjavur district through the School Management Committee, was stabbed to death on the school premises has caused great shock and grief among all the teachers.”
“In an environment where instances of students attacking teachers and anti-social elements causing disturbances on school premises are becoming common, it is distressing to witness the attempt to kill a teacher within the school itself.”
“Action should be taken on a war footing by bringing in the Teachers’ Occupational Safety Act so that such acts do not happen again,” he said.
(Edited by Muhammed Fazil)
