The Physical Training (PT) teacher of a girls’ high school in Jetpur, Rajkot, was arrested on Monday after allegedly verbally abusing and threatening students who were sitting in the school lobby.
According to police, the teacher was detained Monday afternoon after the mother of one of the Class XI students filed a complaint alleging that he verbally abused her daughter and other students Monday morning.
According to the mother, the teacher asked the students to return to their classes instead of sitting in the lobby. On the other hand, the students told him that they had come out in the lobby after another teacher instructed them to do so as the power supply to the school was disrupted.
“However, the PT teacher abused the daughter of the complainant as well as other students verbally and threatened them of dire consequences if they didn’t return to their classroom,” a police officer said, adding, “Following the complaint, an FIR was registered against the PT teacher and he was detained. He was formally arrested at 7:30 pm Monday.”
The teacher has been booked under IPC Sections 354D (stalking), 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace) and under Section 12 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act for allegedly sexually harassing the victims.
The FIR was filed after the girls protested the teacher’s behaviour and made a representation to local authorities and the police, led by a few Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) workers.