Grade 1 pupil assaulted at Durban school

Yajashen Chetty was said to be severely traumatised following the assault in the toilet at the school last week, his mother told Rising Sun Chatsworth.

Sharmla Chetty, 32, who is considering transferring her son to another primary school in the area, said her life is not the same after seeing her son in the condition that he was in following the assault.

“I was called to the school an hour after my son was injured by another pupil. When I arrived at the school, I was shocked to see that my son was unattended to and that the assault had happened over an hour prior to me being notified. My son was traumatised and in pain…” said Chetty.

Yajashen was taken to a local doctor and was then referred to a hospital. His father, Duran, 31, said adequate disciplinary measures had to be put into place to curb the number of incidents of assault at the school, as his older child was also assaulted at the school.

“The school, in my opinion, is not equipped to deal with such young children. When my daughter was assaulted we did not even know about it… I believe urgent intervention from the Department of Education is required at the school, as other shocking revelations have come to our attention following my son’s assault,” he said.

School Governing Body (SGB) member, Amy Naidoo, said that the matter is being investigated and addressed by the relevant parties and parents involved.

“We are deciding on the necessary steps which need to be taken in order to address the matter effectively,” she added.

Investigations are ongoing.

In February, the ANC said parents and teachers should work together to address bullying in schools.

KwaZulu-Natal ANC secretary Sihle Zikalala said reports that a Grade 9 pupil was filmed being beaten and bullied by other pupils was shocking.

“Our schools should be places of learning and teaching and not the centres of bullying.”

He urged teachers and parents to make an effort to address the matter.

Zikalala had been referring to a Facebook video showing a school pupil being beaten up by fellow pupils at Vukuzakhe High School in Umlazi, KwaZulu-Natal.

Three pupils were later suspended pending the decision of a hearing.

– Caxton News Service