A teacher at a training school in Shaoxing, East China's Zhejiang Province, cut a student's hair which has bubble gum stuck in it. Photo: Screenshot of a video posted on Sina Weibo

A teacher at a training school in Shaoxing, East China's Zhejiang Province, has unintentionally become the center of controversy after she cut a small section of a student's hair which had bubble gum stuck in it, local media reported on Sunday.

The parents of the 10-year-old girl asked for 20,000 yuan ($2,876) in compensation from the school for cutting her hair without getting their consent, claiming that the haircut would affect their family business, according to a local tradition in their hometown that they did not elaborate on.

The teacher, surnamed Wang, explained that she had just wanted to help with the girl and only cut a small part of it, which the girl allowed her to do. 

Wang said she would not accept the request for money or the demand that she tape back the girl's cut hair piece by piece, and also cut her own and other female teachers' hair. 

The family's demands were criticized by Chinese netizens for being superstitious, with some calling it "typical blackmail" and saying the case should be taken to the police.

"Are they running a 'scamming' business?" one netizen asked.