10-year-old girl ends up in intensive care after teacher hits her under the ear | Mumbai News

MUMBAI: For the past eight days, 10-year-old Deepika Patel from Nalasopara has been fighting for her life after her teacher hit her below the ear during class.

Deepika, a student of Class 5, has been admitted to the intensive care unit of KJ Somaiya Hospital in Sion with severe brain injury, tetanus poisoning and respiratory failure and is on mechanical ventilation.

On October 5, Deepika had started taking private lessons when her teacher, 20-year-old Ratna Singh, hit her twice below the right ear for allegedly laughing and being naughty, her father, Ambadas Patel, 32, said in his police complaint.

Deepika, whose ear started hurting, returned home and told her mother what had happened. Her mother then went to the education center and confronted Singh, who told her that she had slapped Deepika for disturbing other children, the complaint said.

Her mother and Singh then took Deepika to the Balaji Clinic in Tulinj, where she was given medication. When they returned home in the evening, Patel noticed swelling near Deepika’s ear. He then rushed her to Sanjeevani Hospital, where she was admitted for a day. However, her face started swelling and soon Deepika could not even open her mouth.

“We had to hold a spoon between her lips to give her water,” Patel said. For three days, Deepika could not eat or drink anything. That made her restless and we then took her to a government hospital in Mumbai. But as there were no ICU beds available, we admitted her to KJ Somaiya Hospital through an acquaintance on October 13,” said 32-year-old Ambadas.

“She is undergoing treatment that costs approx ₹25,000 per day. Since we are not financially healthy, we are asking for help from social organizations,” added Patel, who owns a shop at Oswal Nagar in Nalasopara East.

Patel approached Tulinj police on Monday. Based on his complaint, an FIR was registered against Singh. “We have not received a single call from the owner of the classes, and we want them booked because they have put my daughter through hell,” he said.

Based on Patel’s statement, the Tulinj police station has registered a case against Singh under Section 125 (endangering life or personal safety of others) of the Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita and Section 75 (cruelty to children) of the Youth Justice (Care and Protection of Children). ) Action against Ratna Singh. “We have sent a notice to the teacher concerned and further investigations are underway,” said Sub-Inspector Vinod Wayangankar of Tulinj police station.