‘Police to probe caning incident if there’s report’

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KUCHING: The police would probe the recent alleged caning of a primary school pupil here if a report on the case was lodged, State Commissioner of Police Dato Mohmad Salleh said yesterday.

“For us to act, there must be an official complaint received from either the victims or any other concerned parties,” he said when asked whether the police would initiate any investigation to establish the authenticity of the claim by the boy’s mother.

He said that the police would look into the allegation if a report had been lodged and a case like this would normally be investigated under Section 323 of the Penal Code and the normal process was that they would call whoever they believed could help them solve the case.

“At the moment I cannot comment further until I have seen the report,” he said to reporters after attending the police monthly assembly at the State Police Contingent headquarters at Jalan Badruddin here.

In the alleged case, the boy’s mother claimed that her 10-year-old son was caned for bringing non-halal food to school.

The mother, Angela Jabing, claimed that the pupil was caned 10 times on the palm by a senior assistant.

She was unhappy over the alleged incident as there was no reason for her son to be caned for just taking non-halal food to school.

Meanwhile, on a separate subject, Mohmad said that matters regarding restricted residence ordinance (RRO) come under the Home Ministry and that they had no authority whatsoever to review places in the state commonly used for the banishment of people under RRO.

“It is not within our authority. It is under the Home Ministry and I am not even supposed to comment on it,” he said.

He said this when asked to comment on a suggestion put up by a State Legislative Assembly member at the sitting last week that the police should review the banishment localities in the state.