Students accuse Loni school head of sexually harassing them

A 62-year-old headmaster of a government school in Loni was suspended by the basic education department Thursday after several students, including girls, complained

A 62-year-old headmaster of a government school in Loni was suspended by the basic education department Thursday after several students, including girls, complained that he misbehaved, sexually harassed and threatened them.

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The officials said upon receiving the complaints, they have recommended an inquiry against the now suspended headmaster, who has denied all charges. The man heads a composite school, which runs classes from 1 to 5 and 6 to 8. The school has about 600 students on its rolls and the complaint bears the name of 29 students.

“Following the receipt of complaints, we recommended the suspension of the headmaster and the basic education officer accepted our recommendation, pending inquiry. The inquiry will be taken up by our internal committee,” Pawan Kumar Bhati, block education officer, Loni, said.

In their complaints, students said the suspect inappropriately touched girl students and would also narrate objectionable (sexually coloured) stories to them.

“If the girls objected, he would beat them. He would touch girls and pull their hair, besides beating them. When we objected, he told us that he will not teach the students of class 8...,” the complaint to the education department said.

The man denied all charges and said there are a few students in classes 7 and 8 whom he had caught “writing love letters and even slicing their own wrists with sharp objects. He said he had been observing it for past several months but did not inform parents, a laxity which he couldn’t explain.

“During the parent-teacher meeting on Wednesday, a girl raised the issue of a boy trying to harass her and I informed the parents of the boy. The boy’s parents assured us that they will make him understand that he should not harass other students. On Thursday morning, the boy came to class and started abusing the person who complained to his parents,” the headmaster said.

Upon this, the headmaster slapped him in front of students and made him leave the school. He, however, did not take any step to inform the boy’s parents, which is the norm in such cases.

“I admit that I slapped the boy. I am open to any inquiry and deny all charges mentioned in the complaint,” he said.