Caning students to maintain discipline: State and Deputy Principal ordered to pay compensation

17 October 2022 08:04 pm Views - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}} 12 Bookmark

CHATURANGA PRADEEP SAMARAWICKRAMA Follow

A A A

The Supreme Court has ordered the State and a Deputy Principal attached to a government school in Matale to pay a compensation of Rs.200,000 to two students for causing injuries by severely caning them, violating their fundamental rights guaranteed under the constitution.

The Supreme Court held that the Deputy Principal acting under the colour of office, had clearly exceeded his powers as a disciplinarian and subjected the two students to cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment in violation of Article 11 of the Constitution.

Two petitioners who were students of Veera Keppetipola Madya Maha Vidyalaya, Pallepola, Akuramboda in Matale District had filed this Fundamental Rights petition in 2012 challenging the torture, cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment or treatment meted out to them by Deputy Principal Lory Koswatte by severely caning them and causing injuries in violation of the Circulars of the Ministry of Education and violating their fundamental rights guaranteed under Article 11 and Article 12 (1) of the Constitution.

The Deputy Principal was of the view that the punishments which were of ‘disciplinary’ nature were vindicated by the fact that the petitioners accepted liability for causing damages to school property. The respondent further contended that he had no intention of subjecting the Petitioners to cruel and inhuman treatment or punishment and acted in good faith with the objective of maintaining discipline in the school and with the intention of discouraging such behaviour among the students.

Contrary to the respondent's version, the medical evidence placed before Court supported the Petitioners’ version of events and established that the impugned uninhibited assault was both violent, degrading and had a detrimental impact on the physical and mental wellbeing of the Petitioners.

Supreme Court bench comprised Justices Buwaneka Aluwihare, A.H.M.D. Nawaz and Shiran Gooneratne.
Counsel Shantha Jayawardena appeared for the petitioners. (Lakmal Sooriyagoda)

Comments - 12

Lan Monday, 17 October 2022 08:37 PM

This is a good example from the court and hundreds of students are beated up each day across the country and let us teach all school teachers not to take law in to their hands . Court must impose fine and penalties on teachers who beat students ..even teachers can be fired if they do it consistently . This should be a warning to all other teachers

0 0

Dee Monday, 17 October 2022 08:42 PM

It's accepted I suppose with today's HR standards. But we are somewhat right todate because we were caned and we were disciplined. And guaranteed we will never have the right people from the so called X generation or whatever!

0 0

GHT Monday, 17 October 2022 09:41 PM

Sack that bugger of hoot; deputy Principal, who has not been able hold the position as Deputy Principal anymore. No pension should be paid to him. The same treatment he should get from the students who were distriminatedly treated.

0 0

Ram Tuesday, 18 October 2022 01:50 AM

Disciplining children must be left to the teachers and the authorities must not interfere. The teachers must be taught their limits. Olden days children were disciplined by the teachers and parents. I will be surprised if the present day over 60 in age say that they were not disciplined by teachers and parents

0 0

Nathan Tuesday, 18 October 2022 03:44 AM

When I was a student at a leading private school in Jaffna, St John’s College Jaffna, in the 70s, we had a principal called Pooranampilai, he was considered a strict disciplinarian by the whole of Jaffna. It was a school and not a prison but he treated anyone who crossed his path like a criminal. He used to hit students for slightest errors using canes or his bare hands. The whole school was terrified of him including the teaching staff. At the time we were young to judge him but now looking back, he was simply an “arrogant sadist” who should never have been allowed to go near school children. He is dead and gone. But in the current enlightened times, if he had been alive and doing such horrible things to pupils , he would have been arrested and charged in the courts.

0 0

lion Tuesday, 18 October 2022 05:04 AM

the heading denotes a meaning which could be misunderstood by the reader.

0 0

Fernando Tuesday, 18 October 2022 08:02 AM

Damn good for the principal and the deputy. Children are not their property to cane or to subject them to cruelty and humiliation. If they are at fault, then according to the offence, suspend them, inform parents, make an entry in the police or even expel them, but you don't touch them. Hope this will be a lesson to other school principals and teachers as well.

0 0

Kandy Tuesday, 18 October 2022 09:57 AM

To hell with the FR. We have so much of anarchy today in the society due to the stop of punishing school children for their misdeeds. When they come to the society at large they think they can do anything

0 0

Jaffna Student Tuesday, 18 October 2022 10:59 AM

It was a pathetic situation in Jaffna, in the so called Hindu colleges too. With a "holier than thou attitude" and unbridled arragance boasting of mythical past Tamil Hindu glory, the Hindu religious and Tamil teachers were the worst lost. It may have contributed to this brooding and vengeful nature to end up as an International tragedy for the whole society. All science subjects including Pure Maths, Applied Maths were taught in Tamil without even prescribed text books making the students illiterate. Even in the A/L classes some of these unscrupulous teachers chose to punish and humilate only the poor or meek children to show that they are tough. Instilling, "The Strong Do What They Can and the Weak Suffer What They Must".

0 0

Sadist who was a school principal Tuesday, 18 October 2022 01:36 PM

Nathan, you are absolutely right as I also studied at St Johns College Jaffna under the principal Mr Pooranampillai. Some Tamils still call him a “ great disciplinarian “. What a stupid thing to say as if the school was for “undisciplined students”. Now, thinking back, What great things he did for the school ? Nothing, other than “ terrorising “ the students and the teachers .He was a “ violent sadist “ who should have been sent to prison .

0 0

Terrence Tuesday, 18 October 2022 06:55 PM

@Kandy I fully agree with your comment as now laws are there to mollycoddle children as a result our country is in chaos. I thank my superiors in instilling discipline to students by punishing which many parents of a bygone era will endorse as we had a good society and not anarchy

0 0

Rajitha Fernando Wednesday, 19 October 2022 02:36 AM

These students of 2012 must be parents now must be parents by 2022. God Bless the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka

0 0

Add comment
Comments will be edited (grammar, spelling and slang) and authorized at the discretion of Daily Mirror online. The website also has the right not to publish selected comments.