PETALING JAYA, July 30 — The headmistress of SK Alam Megah in Shah Alam who allegedly told non-Malay pupils to “go back to India and China” is being investigated over the incident, Deputy Education Minister P. Kamalanathan said today.

Yesterday, reports surfaced that the headmistress had lashed out at non-Malay students for being unruly during an assembly, allegedly telling them to “Balik India dan China” (Go back to India and China).

“We do not condone such behaviour... If the allegation is true, then action would be taken,” the Hulu Selangor MP reportedly wrote in a text message to news portal Malaysiakini.

Earlier today, MCA Youth chief Datuk Dr Wee Ka Siong had lashed out at the alleged incident and noted the trend of educators involved in such instances.

“This recurring theme of targeting students who are not of the same ethnicity is disappointing.

“[Schools] are expected to inculcate mutual racial respect for one another irrespective of ethnicity and creed, rather than polarise friendships as not only are the students offended, the multiracial teachers too are likewise affected,” Wee said.

The latest incident in Shah Alam is reminiscent of the 2010 case when the headmistress of Sekolah Menegah Kebangsaan Bukit Selambau in Sungai Petani, Kedah accused Chinese pupils there of being insensitive towards their Muslim peers by eating in the school compound during Ramadan, before ordering them to “return to China” if they could not respect the culture of other races.

The same year, the head of a school in Kulai, Johor had labelled non-Malay pupils “pendatang” (immigrants).

Although both school heads later apologised, the incidents and others in the same vein led to accusations of perceived tolerance for racism within the government and the civil service that some blamed on programmes conducted by the National Civics Bureau (BTN).