The students of a government-aided school in Kallakurichi of Tamil Nadu have raised a complaint alleging that they have been repeatedly sexually harassed and abused by faculty of the hostel and school, including a warden of the hostel. The complaint seeking action against the alleged perpetrators was sent to the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), Education Department, Police and the district administration, on February 6.
The complaint has been filed by 122 students, studying between Classes 9 and 12, residing at the hostel of Good Shepherd Higher Secondary School in Serapattu of Kallakurichi. The government-aided school is run under the management of the Kanyakumari Diocese of the Church of South India. The students are from tribal communities and are hesitant to file a police complaint, sources said.
According to the complaint, the warden for the girls' hostel Lakshmi was substituted by Sahila Rani, whenever the former went on leave. The complaint alleges that Sahila Rani sexually harassed the students multiple times. The incident came to light in October 2022, when a student filed a written complaint to the warden Lakshmi alleging that Sahila Rani sexually abused her. Following this complaint, at least seven other complaints were filed alleging the same and accusations were also made against nine other persons in the school.
The primary allegation against Sahila Rani is that she touched the students inappropriately and injured one student. Doubts have also been raised in the complaint that similar abuses and harassment might have happened to other students and also mentions that a student attempted suicide.
Speaking to TNM, Lakshmi said, “When the incident was reported to the school management, General Secretary David Robi Jacob, correspondent Jones Light and hostel convener JM Lloyd Raj took some students with him from the hostel during the night under the guise of inquiry. The children were threatened and asked not to reveal this to anyone.”
Speaking to TNM, another staff member said that the management also started harassing Lakshmi once she stood firm on her support to the students. Lakshmi has now been transferred to another hostel functioning under the same diocese and so is Sahila Rani. The staff also said that the students were threatened to give false statements regarding the incident and that the complaints were raised due to the instigation of Lakshmi.
The complaint also names other teachers who threatened the students with failing them and expelling them from the school. Despite sending a complaint to the chairman of the school, the issue has not been resolved, so the complaint was sent to the state and Union authorities. The students have sought to constitute a Special Investigation Team and investigate the case under video coverage.
When TNM contacted the District Collector Sravan Kumar Jatavath, he said that an inquiry was conducted into the issue as soon as it was reported. “The complaint was received around two months ago, and an inquiry was conducted by the Education Department and Social Welfare Department. The District Child Protection Officer (DCPO) submitted a report after a detailed inquiry that the complaint was filed due to enmity between the two women wardens. A medical examination was also conducted on the concerned students and the examiner also said that there was no abuse. After this was reported to the management of the aided school, both the wardens have been transferred. Following this, another complaint has been sent in February and another inquiry is underway. If at all the complaints are found to be true, proper action will be initiated,” he said and added that a police complaint under POCSO Act will be filed if there is any indication of sexual harassment during the initial inquiry.