Teacher held for forcing girl to remove dress during exam; probe panel formed

The school teacher who allegedly forced a teenaged Dalit girl to remove her dress to check whether she was copying from paper chits hidden in her uniform to write her exam here in Jharkhand’s East Singhbhum district was arrested, police said on Saturday.

The class 9 girl who allegedly set herself on fire following the “humiliation” on Friday is being treated in a hospital in a serious condition.

The East Singhbhum District authorities formed a two-member committee to investigate the incident, an official said.

The girl, in a statement to the police, has said that the woman invigilator humiliated her and made her remove clothes in a room adjacent to the classroom to check if she was hiding the chits in the uniform, despite strong resistance on her part.

Her mother said that the teenager could not bear the humiliation and set herself ablaze shortly after returning from school.

A complaint has been filed against the teacher and the matter was being looked into.

Police said the accused teacher was arrested on Friday night under various sections of the IPC, POCSO Act and Juvenile Justice Act.

Deputy Commissioner Vijaya Jadav formed a committee comprising Dhalbhum Sub-Divisional Officer Sandeep Kumar Meena and District Education Officer (DEO) Nirmala Kumari Barelia to probe into the incident, an official said.

The DC has directed the committee to submit its report within 24 hours, the DEO said.

The DEO has also constituted a four-member probe panel and asked it to submit a report in two days.

When contacted, the school’s Principal Gita Rani Mahato claimed that the girl was caught cheating in the examination and the teacher made the student remove the dress on the upper part to check whether chits were hidden.

Enraged over the incident, a tribal organisation staged a dharna in front of the office of the district education officer on Saturday demanding immediate dismissal of the accused teacher.

It also sought free and proper treatment of the student.