Jharkhand School Principal Booked for Allegedly Raping 6-Year-Old

For representational purposes only.

(Photo: The Quint/Hardeep Singh)

On Thursday, 30 November, Francis Xavier, principal of a private English-medium school in Tilayia, Jharkhand, was taken in for interrogation for allegedly raping a six-year-old girl on 28 November, The Telegraph reported.

Koderma Superintendent of Police Shivani Tewari said the accused had been booked under Sections 4, 8 and 12 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and Sections 376 and 323 of the Indian Penal Code. “He was caught soon after the case was brought to our notice. The law will take its own course,” Tewari told The Telegraph.

A police officer from the Tilaiya Police Station told The Telegraph that Xavier took the girl into the toilet and harassed her. He forced her to keep the incident a secret.

During initial interrogation, he (the principal) pleaded innocence and said he was too old to rape anyone. Later, he admitted that it was a mistake committed under ‘extreme stress since he was sleep deprived for days.’ The child’s medical test report hasn’t arrived yet.

A Tilaiya officer told <i><a href="https://www.telegraphindia.com/states/jharkhand/kid-rape-cuffs-on-principal-190429">The Telegraph</a></i>

Further investigation revealed that the principal had repeatedly harassed the six-year-old. He would molest her in the toilet and even take off his clothes.

The police said that the girl told her grandmother about the same, and this led to the family manhandling the principal.

(This is a developing story. More details awaited)

(With inputs from The Telegraph)

(Breathe In, Breathe Out: Are you finding it tough to breathe polluted air? Join hands with FIT in partnership with #MyRightToBreathe to find a solution to pollution. Send in your suggestions to [e-mail] or WhatsApp @ [phone])