A video showing a head teacher and an assistant teacher scuffle inside an office room of a government primary school in Mymensing`s Fulbaria upazila has gone viral on Facebook, prompting education authorities to take action.

The video spread on Tuesday (October 13) evening, triggering widespread discussion and criticism. The upazila primary education office said it would write to the relevant authorities on Wednesday (October 14) to take necessary action.

The incident took place at Akta Government Primary School in Rangamatia union of Fulbaria upazila. The teachers involved are headteacher Afzal Hossain and assistant teacher Asma Begum, who are husband and wife.

The scuffle reportedly took place 10 to 12 days ago at the office room over a family dispute.

Fulbaria Upazila Primary Education Officer Mohammad Iqbal Hossain said the incident came to their attention after the video circulated on social media. He said he had learned that the couple had been involved in a long-standing dispute.

Afzal and Asma married in 2004 and have a daughter who is preparing for university admission after completing higher secondary education. The couple have reportedly been living separately for around 14 years, and legal cases related to their family dispute are pending in court.

Both teachers joined Akta Government Primary School around 2011.

Afzal said they had been involved in a prolonged family dispute and that it sometimes spilled over into the school. He said the fight on the day in question also stemmed from their personal differences. According to him, fellow teachers recorded the incident on video at his request.

He said they had been estranged for more than 10 to 15 years but had not divorced. He also said legal cases had been filed against him over the family dispute.

The headteacher admitted that such an incident should not have taken place inside the school office. He said similar incidents had occurred between them at the school on two or three previous occasions.

Several attempts to contact Asma by phone for her comment went unanswered.

Education officer Iqbal Hossain reiterated that the incident had occurred 10 to 12 days earlier and came to the authorities` attention after the video went viral. He said a letter would be sent to the relevant authorities on Wednesday to seek necessary action.

“Such behaviour by teachers at a school is undesirable,” he said.

Akta Government Primary School currently has five teachers and more than 90 students.