According to a report by The Star Online, the girl’s stepfather said she had returned from the tuition centre in Malacca with welts on her hands and legs on April 12.

The stepfather said he called the centre and was told by the teacher that the girl was caned because she was slow in learning and did not complete her homework.

“Although they had told us they were using that method to teach the children, I did not think they would beat her to that extent,” he was quoted as saying at a press conference by Pasir Gudang MCA Public Complaints Bureau Deputy Chairman Lim Thow Siang in Johor yesterday.

The girl’s grandfather, who lodged the police report, also alleged that it was not the first time the girl had been caned.

However, he said, usually she would be caned only on the hands, adding that the girl had been taken for a check-up at the Malacca Hospital.

Malacca police chief Deputy Commissioner Ramli Din confirmed police were investigating the incident.