School violence: 4 teens in court, Standard 2 pupil hurt by classmates

Four schoolchildren appeared before the Magistrate’s Court in Sungai Petani, Kedah, over allegations of inflicting harm on their classmates in separate incidents.

In one case, two Form One girls were accused of causing hurt and unlawfully confining a fellow student in a school toilet last month. Both claimed trial.

Sinar Harian reported that according to the charges, the pair had intentionally caused injury to a classmate at about 6.40pm at a secondary school on July 14.

Both teenagers were charged under Section 323 of the Penal Code, read together with Section 34, which carries a maximum penalty of one year’s imprisonment, a fine of up to RM2,000, or both.

For the second charge, they were accused of wrongfully confining the same victim at the same time and date, an offence under Section 342 of the Penal Code read together with Section 34, which also carries a maximum sentence of one year’s imprisonment, a fine of up to RM2,000, or both.

Deputy public prosecutor Nur Hazwani Md Nor requested bail of RM4,000, but counsel N Nagaratnam urged the court to reduce the amount, pointing out that the accused were still in school, had cooperated with the police, and had their parents as guarantors.

In another case, two Form Three boys pleaded guilty to causing hurt to a Form Four schoolmate.

According to the charge, they intentionally injured the victim at about 12.15pm in the school hall on July 21. They were charged under Section 323 of the Penal Code, which carries a maximum penalty of one year’s imprisonment, a fine of up to RM2,000, or both.

Broken nose

In a separate incident in Kuala Terengganu, a Standard Two pupil suffered a broken nose and a fracture near his eye after he was allegedly assaulted by several schoolmates on July 30.

The victim’s mother, Rifka Amelia Bustomi Sofian, 37, said she discovered what had happened when her second child returned home around 4pm with a bloody nose and bruised face.

According to her, she immediately took him to a private clinic before going for an X-ray, which confirmed the broken nose.

“My son had previously told me he was often bullied, but I never imagined it would come to this.

“He was attacked by a group of pupils - some held his hands so he couldn’t escape, while others pushed and punched him in the face until he fell, causing the broken nose and the fracture near his eye,” she said.

These cases come amid mounting public concern over a surge in bullying incidents across the country.

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