The world may not be such a happy place, but a few years ago, schools were considered to be safe havens for children. It was a place where they not just learnt their lessons and about life in general, they made friends and enjoyed their childhood under the watchful eyes of the teachers. However, several incidents of late have changed this perception and the latest one is something night mares are made of.
A class nine student of a private school in Bihar's Saran district has alleged that she was raped by about 18 people in her school over the last eight months. The 18 people include the school's principal, two of the teachers and 15 other students.
Speaking of the ordeal on Friday, July 6, the girl explained that she remained quiet for all these months fearing social stigma. But she approached the police on Friday and filed a complaint alleging that she was raped since December 2017. She explained that three of her schoolmates had raped in the school toilet in December and shot a video of the act. They then warned her against telling anyone and said that they would make the video public.
While the girl remained tight-lipped about the incident, the students are said to have circulated the video, which even reached the teachers. However, instead of taking action, they too are said to have blackmailed and raped her.
"The poor girl apprehending stigma and the video going viral in public went on succumbing to the carnal desires of other boys and two teachers in possession of the video," Hindustan Times quoted superintendent of police Har Kishore Rai as saying.
The class nine girl then approached her principal hoping for some action. However, she was asked not to speak of it as it would bring her and the school bad name. If that wasn't enough, the principal of the school too is said to have called her to his office and raped her.
The police have now arrested Uday Kumar alias Mukund Singh, the principal of the school, a teacher identified as Balaji and two minor students.
"The victim has named all 18 persons as her perpetrators in the FIR registered with the women's police station. We have formed a team led by Chapra Sadar DSP to probe the case and arrest all the culprits," Rai added. The girl was sent for a medical check-up.
Teachers turn predators
The incident comes a few months after it was reported that two class 4 students in West Bengal were raped by a teacher in a classroom for four consecutive days.
The incident came to light after one of the students refused to go to school and spoke of it to her parents. She then also named the other victim, reported the Press Trust of India.
