School headmaster booked under POCSO Act, jailed

The headmaster of a government elementary school at Kattampatty in Coimbatore district, was on Thursday arrested after being booked under the POCSO Act for allegedly misbehaving with girl students, police said.

The parents of 11 students, studying in fourth and fifth standards, had complained about the 52-year-old headmaster for sexually harassing the girl students, the police said.

The school head refused to meet the parents and got himself admitted to the hospital a few days ago, and the parents staged a protest demanding police action against the accused.

As the parents refused to give up, the police took seven of them in the van, even as the headmaster talked to mother of one of the students and expressed regret for his misbehaviour.

Even members of the All India Democratic Women's Association (AIDWA) and Students Federation of India (SFI) had taken up the issue. The parents lodged a complaint with Child Protection Unit in the district, who in turn lodged a complaint with the police.

The accused was taken into custody in the early hours of Thursday and after booking a case under the POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences) Act, he was produced before mahila court which sent him to jail.