Grade 11 pupil beaten in alleged racially-motivated attack at school

A GRADE 11 pupil at Seatides Combined School was allegedly beaten in what his father described as a racially motivated attack.

The father claimed the school downplayed the incident, allowing the alleged attackers to return to class with minimal consequences while their son remained traumatised.

Neeraj Nundhraj, of Tongaat, alleged his son, Kairav, 16, a Grade 11 pupil, was bullied, intimidated and physically assaulted by two pupils during the lunch break. 

He said Kairav and his friends sat on a free bench to eat their lunch when two boys, who are believed to be brothers - from grades 10 and 11 – confronted them.

“They told my son and his friends that they had been sitting on the bench and left for a few minutes to use the toilet. 

“Kairav’s friends got up. But he told the bullies that he would get up once he was finished eating. They pulled his hand and a fight ensued,” said Nundhraj.

“They punched Kairav’s face, kicked him to the ground and got on top of him. My son could do nothing but take the beating. At this point he was also scared to retaliate and just allowed them to beat him up. ” he added.

“The teacher on duty did not even bother to check on my son who was lying on the ground but rather asked the two bullies if they were okay. In my view this was a racially motivated attack,” claimed Nundhraj.

He said after the fight, he was contacted by the school and told to pick his son up. 

“The guidance counsellor gave me no details of the fight. I took my son to the doctor and on the way back he told me the whole story. I was furious when I realised my son was a victim of bullying. He sustained injuries to his head, hand and face. We have all the doctor;s documentation to prove how badly he was beaten,” he said.

Nundhraj said the school held a disciplinary tribunal hearing on August 29. 

“When the hearing took place I was out of the province. I asked them to postpone it but it was declined. The school said the hearing had to take place immediately after the seven day suspension. 

“My wife went alone with my son to the hearing, which only took 15 minutes. The consequence – which was a short suspension – was inadequate in my view. Those boys were back to school the next Monday like nothing happened. In the meantime my son has become withdrawn and afraid to go to school,” said Nundhraj.

“In my view, the school treated this incident very lightly. They refused to disclose the full details of the punishment allegedly meted out to the boys. All that they said was that the two boys were attending anger management sessions.

“However, my traumatised son was not even offered trauma counselling,” claimed Nundhraj.

He said he now feared for his son’s safety at school. 

“The issue of bullying and violence was not addressed. These boys got away with a slap on the wrist. I need to know that my son is safe at school. I have been told that the pupils were told by some teachers that if they find themselves in a similar situation, they should just comply.

“Is this what we teach our children? To accept bullying and violence? If my son had retaliated anymore, he would have sustained far more serious injuries. The school needs to equip themselves better to deal with bullying,” added Nundhraj.

A still shaken Kairav said he was disappointed with how the school had handled this incident.

“I am not happy at the outcome of the tribunal hearing.  Nothing much was done to the two boys who assaulted me. They got away easily. They turned on me for sitting on a bench. That was uncalled for,” he said.

The school’s principal Ruvandhiran Naidoo, said they had followed protocol.  

“We condemn bullying and work tirelessly to ensure its eradication. The act of bullying referred to was attended to immediately and referred to the schools disciplinary committee which addressed the matter in terms of the School Code of Conduct  aligned to the South African Schools Act,” he said.

A case of assault was opened at Tongaat Police Station.

The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Education did not respond in time of print. 

THE POST