KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 24 — Twenty seven people have been punished by Chinese authorities over the “tragically ugly” illustrations in a Mathematics textbook.

The decision came following a month-long investigation by the working group of China’s education ministry which found the book “not beautiful”, and some illustrations were “quite ugly” and did not “properly reflect the sunny image of China’s children”, The Guardian reported.

The book was published by the People’s Education Press almost 10 years ago, and has been reportedly used in elementary schools across the country.

The illustrations only went viral in May after a teacher shared these, including people with distorted faces and bulging pants, pictures of boys grabbing girls’ skirts and at least one child with an apparent leg tattoo.

Social media users had been amused by the illustrations, but many also criticised them as bringing disrepute and “cultural annihilation” to China, speculating they were the deliberate work of western infiltrators in the education sector.

Related hashtags were viewed billions of times, embarrassing the Communist party and education authorities who announced a review of all textbooks “to ensure textbooks adhere to the correct political direction and value orientation”.

In a statement, the ministry said 27 individuals were found to have “neglected their duties and responsibilities” and were punished, including the president of the publishing house, who was given formal demerits, which can affect a party member’s standing and future employment.

The editor-in-chief and the head of the Mathematics department editing office were also given demerits and dismissed from their roles.

It also said the illustrators and designers were “dealt with accordingly” but did not reveal the details.

They and their studios would no longer be engaged to work on textbook design or related work, it added.