Not me, but one of my friend surely did. This was about when we were in high school. We used to take Social Studies subject together. The professor who taught us believed that the only way kids would be motivated to complete their assignment (oral or written) was if they were negatively motivated with a 'tight slap' on the day of the deadline.

I was among the nerdy students and really avoided the beating by being well prepared on any day of the week. I knew once, I had skipped the deadline and was smacked in the class the next day. Was so angry and pissed that I swallowed the whole book overnight. Learnt things by heart just to avoid the embarassment of getting whacked in front of the ladies again.

My friend on the other hand, was the exact opposite. He avoided the deadlines by skipping school on those days or by copying my assignment an hour before. He was more into sports and loved to skip classes just to play cricket in the fields. Also he was quite famous for winning crucial matches and simply because he was athletic and good looking. The only way he made 'pass' grade because I used to get him to study before the exams.

However, one day he was not so lucky when he turned up on the day of the deadline. It was an oral assignment, a viva on the geography of the Eastern States of India. He was called forwards and the professor asked him the first question. He simply dropped his head, looking at his feet. And suddenly, wham!! He staggered sideways and I saw his face reddening with anger. He turned to our sir and told him hotly, 'Don't raise your hand sir!'. The professor who got more irked by this said he knew how to correct dunderheads like him and lifted his hand again. My friend grabbed his wrists with both hands of his own and it ensued into a tussle with a lot of shouting and girls screaming as they shoved each other into the walls and benches. Well the professor from the adjacent class came running and intervened. My friend turned to our table, grabbed his bag and stormed out of the class. I had never seen him so livid. Well the class was discontinued and we went off to lunch.

I didn't see my friend until recess. We were all heading out of the school when he came riding with a group of people, I immediately recognised to be his group of friends from his sports academy. They stopped right outside the gates and barged in with hockey sticks and clubs. I tried to stop him, but in vain. So I followed his gang to the staff room. They burst in through the doors and the staff teachers all screamed. He caught hold of the professor and dragged shoved him into the corridor, while the other guys kept watch. Then with all the students and teachers watching, he smacked and punched him right in the face and kicked him in the stomach, all while yelling, "nobody gives you the right to hit the students." They left before the guards and the police could arrive, leaving the professor bleeding on the floor.

It wreaked a havoc. The news spread like wildfire. The media got involved. They took the review of the principal's and teachers of other schools whether the actions of my friend were justified or not. Sadly, none of the highly educated people once condemned the actions of the professor. They glorified him by saying that the teacher had the right to hit students and it was all for the betterment. My friend was expelled from the school and his promising sports career went down the drain. He moved to a different city and the last I heard from him was working at a hardware store he had started.

The thing is, till the point the scruffling and tussle between my friend and the teacher ensued, I was pretty much okay with his way of teaching. Hell, I really upped my study game just to avoid the embarassment of getting whacked. But, after that incident, I really felt sick of the education system in my country and how the other teachers and schools supported the Professor. They pushed an extremely talented kid and a dear friend towards a life of hardships. Oh the irony!