Principal gets prison term for beating student in Bhutan

A court in Bhutan has sentenced a school principal to prison for three months for inflicting corporal punishment on a student.

The principal can pay compensation of Nu (Ngultrum-Bhutanese currency) 11,250 (Rs.11,250) in lieu of the prison term, the Mongar district court judge said in his verdict earlier this week.

The principal also has to pay a compensation to the boy for "traumatising him" and making him miss school for a year, Bhutan's national newspaper Kuensel reported.

The principal told the court that the boy went against school rules and bullied a junior student. He later refused to apologise for his acts.

The court said the principal hit the student with a cable wire in his office, and medical reports showed signs of multiple bruises and abrasions on his back.

By using corporal punishment, the court said, the principal had gone against the nation's education policy.