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Jind sexual harassment: No past history against sacked principal, say police
Balwan Singh, station house officer of Uchana Kalan in Jind, said that they don’t have any criminal record or daily diary report (DDR) against the sacked principal except one case of sexual harassment against 142 minor girls registered on October 30
Jind police probed the charges against a government school principal accused of sexual harassment of 142 minor girls and asserted that the principal has no history of sexual misconduct in police records.
The principal of the Uchana Kalan school was earlier arrested and dismissed from service over the allegations.
Balwan Singh, station house officer of Uchana Kalan in Jind, said that they don’t have any criminal record or daily diary report (DDR) against the sacked principal except one case of sexual harassment against 142 minor girls registered on October 30.
In the recently concluded Haryana assembly session, deputy chief minister Dushyant Chautala and former education minister Geeta Bhukkal, MLA from Jhajjar, exchanged heated arguments over the issue when Bhukkal said that daughters were not safe in educational institutes anymore. Replying to Bhukkal’s allegations, Chautala, who represents Uchana constituency, alleged that the sacked principal had faced complaints in 2005 and 2011 during Congress regime and accused Bhukkal of sheltering the accused then.
Dushyant alleged that the police had lodged a DDR against the accused teacher in 2011 and a panchayat was held to stop registration of an FIR against him. He further added that the panchayat was held at Bhukkal’s residence in 2011 for a compromise so that no FIR is lodged against the accused principal. Chautala claimed that such cases came to fore against the teacher in 2005 also.
A four-member committee led by Haryana education minister Kanwar Pal was constituted to investigate the said matters of 2005 to 2023 period.
The former village sarpanch Sudesh Rani denied Chautala’s allegations and said, “ We did not approach police and no meeting took place at the then education minister Geeta’s residence. The matter came to our notice in 2012 after a group of teachers visited my home and raised allegations of rude behaviour and sexual harassment against the then headmaster (now sacked principal). We went to Chandigarh and met Bhukkal at her residence in February 2013 along with four panchayat members. Bhukkal initiated action against the teacher.”
Talking over phone, Jhajjar MLA Geeta Bhukkal said that it’s the responsibility of deputy CM Dushyant Chautala to prove allegations that the DDR or complaint was filed against the teacher in 2005 and 2011-12.
“ The recent sexual harassment case against minor girls took place in his constituency but he never visited the school and is making false allegations against us to shield his failures. The teacher was recruited in 2008 and how could the cases be registered against him in 2005? No meeting was held at my residence and I took action in 2013 when the panchayat members told me about the issue,” she added.
In a press release, deputy CM Dushyant Chautala said that he stands on his words spoken during the assembly session over this issue.
Women activists said that the police had delayed the matter and registered an FIR against the principal after 45 days.
“ The enrolment of girls in the school reduced during the sacked principal’s tenure from 2017 to 2023. Three girls committed suicide but investigation was not done properly,” alleged women activists.
The girls wrote a letter to the President, Prime Minister, national women commission, Haryana governor, education minister, state women commission and many other dignitaries on August 31 and Haryana women commission asked Jind police to take action on September 14 but police booked him on October 30 after a delay of 45 days.
However, in the meantime the accused principal went on a tour to Amritsar with 64 girls on October 25 without prior approval of the education department.
