2 days ago
Female teacher, 40, arrested for grooming and sexually assaulting 16-year-old male pupil
A 40-year-old woman teacher at a prominent Indian school was arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting a 16-year-old male student on multiple occasions.
The teacher, an English instructor in Mumbai, is accused of taking the boy to five-star hotels, making him drink alcohol, and giving him anti-anxiety pills before committing the abuse.
The abuse began in January 2024 after the teacher became attracted to the boy during dance group meetings in late 2023, according to the police.
She would allegedly use a woman friend to coax the boy into meeting her and take him to isolated places or luxury hotels, where she would sexually assault him. The boy reportedly developed acute anxiety from the abuse and was given anti-anxiety pills by the teacher.
The minor's parents noticed a change in his behaviour and encouraged him to open up about the abuse. Initially, they did not take any action as the boy was about to leave the school after his class 10 exams. However, when the teacher tried to contact him again after he had left the school, the parents decided to approach the Mumbai police.
"The teacher has been arrested under relevant sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act and the Juvenile Justice Act for aggravated sexual assault and has been taken into custody by the Dadar police," the Times of India reported.
During the investigation, the teacher allegedly admitted to the crime and showed the police the places where she had assaulted the boy, reported the Indian Express. The police have reportedly obtained CCTV footage of some of the places establishing the presence of the accused and the boy.
The teacher was arrested and remanded in police custody for four days. She was subsequently taken for a psychiatric test at a local government hospital. The police sought an extension of her custody, but the court denied the request and sent her to judicial custody for 14 days.
The Pocso Act protects children from sexual abuse, regardless of their gender, and carries a punishment of at least seven years in jail, up to life imprisonment, and a fine in cases of penetrative sexual assault.
The school the teacher worked at expressed shock and said it was cooperating with the police investigation. The school's spokesperson said they had a zero-tolerance policy towards sexual offences against children.
The accused teacher resigned from the school in 2024 after the management expressed displeasure over her performance, reports said.
'We will visit the school to understand what led to her resignation,' a police officer told the Hindustan Times newspaper.
