Six-Year-Old's Death in India Exposes Gap in Corporal Punishment Law

A kindergarten teacher's slap killed six-year-old Pranay Teja in Visakhapatnam on August 20. India's RTE Act and Juvenile Justice Act ban corporal punishment, yet lawyer Kawalpreet Kaur says no standalone criminal offence exists, so cases default to minor "hurt" charges. A 2018 study found 80 percent of surveyed low-income children were beaten weekly. The enforcement gap persists.