In a shocking incident, a 23-month-old child was bitten by another toddler 25 times and beaten in the span of 15 minutes after being left unsupervised at a daycare and preschool in Maharashtra.
The incident occurred at FirstCry Intellitots Preschool located in the CIDCO N-1 area of Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar.
Police have registered a case against six individuals, including the CEO of the preschool and have launched an investigation into the incident.
The incident occurred on June 22 2026.
The child’s father dropped off his son at the preschool at around 10:30 am.
At around 11 am, a classroom aide took one of the students outside the classroom, and while leaving, locked the door from the outside.
The toddlers in the room remained unsupervised by any teachers or staff members for at least 30 minutes.
Reports say that a fight broke out among the children, with many crying after realising that no adults were present. Two of the children got into a prolonged fight, with one boy, a two and half year old, beating and biting another multiple times.
CCTV footage of the incident shows the classroom aide leaving the room and the child beating the others.
The complainant's son allegedly sustained multiple injuries to his face, chest, back and feet and reportedly had multiple bite marks on his back. A girl child also suffered from injuries.
The child's parents said that they only discovered the injuries after the returned home that day. They alleged that the school did not inform them about the injury when the child was picked up. The child was also not taken to the hospital or provided with first aid.
They alleged that when they questioned the school administration, they were initially told that the child had suffered only minor scratches.
When they requested the CCTV footage, the school reportedly refused to provide it.
The MIDC CIDCO police station registered a case against six individuals after the parents approached them with a complaint. The FIR states that the preschool also tried to dissuade the parents from approaching the police and filing a complaint, and claimed that no action could be taken against them.
The child has been hospitalised for his injuries.
The incident has sparked outrage with many questioning safety measures in preschools.
There have also been renewed calls for stricter regulations and stronger monitoring in such schools to ensure the safety of children.
According to Primary Education Officer Jayshree Chavan, an inspection was carried out, and orders have been issued to shut down the day-care facility.
“The operators also failed to produce the required registration certificate”, she said.
