Child abuse case: Police summons principal; victim named by school

Kolkata: The Kolkata police on Tuesday summoned the principal of GD Birla Centre for Education in connection with the probe into the alleged sexual abuse of a 4-year-old student in the school allegedly by two male teachers.

A worker engaged in cleaning work and two other non-teaching staff members were also summoned for questioning, a senior Kolkata police official said.

Principal Sharmila Nath, meanwhile, courted controversy by allegedly revealing the name of the victim girl in letters to guardians, violating the Prevention of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012.

Joint CP (Crime) Visal Garg today said Nath was summoned at Kolkata Police’s women grievance cell at Lalbazar, headquarter of the Kolkata police.

A special committee formed by the police yesterday to look into the allegations of negligence and false representation on part of the school would question the principal and others.

The committee comprises representatives from the West Bengal State Education Department, West Bengal Commission for Protection of Child Rights and the ICSE Board, New Delhi and the Kolkata police.

The parents of the girl had lodged a police complaint demanding the principal’s arrest for allegedly suppressing facts about the incident and for not taking preventive measures despite a similar incident three years ago.

The principal, in her letter sent yesterday to around 4,000 guardians assuring safety of their wards in the school, had mentioned the name of the girl. “We have been running the school smoothly for the past 44 years. We can assure you that the safety and security of all our students is always our highest priority while they are in the school premises and while travelling on our school buses,” Nath wrote in the letter after naming the girl.

When contacted, West Bengal Commission for Protection of Children’s Rights chairperson Ananya Chatterjee Chakraborti said it would show cause Nath for identifying the girl.

“This is absolutely illegal. She cannot name the child. We will show cause the Principal for violating the POCSO Act. How can she do it? She has violated the basic tenets of humanity,” Chakraborti told PTI on Tuesday.

In a late night development, the police arrested a staff member of another reputed school, M P Birla Foundation Higher Secondary School, for his alleged involvement in sexually abusing a lower nursery student.

He was arrested late last night for allegedly sexually abusing the child twice —  in June and September this year.

The parents had lodged a complaint with the police in September.

The arrest was made only after guardians of other students along with the child’s parents demonstrated following the incident at G.D. Birla Centre for Education on Monday.