Protests have been on at Kolkata's GD Birla School, where a four-year-old was sexually abused.
Protests by parents in Kolkata continued as the staff member of another school was arrested last night in connection with the sexual assault on another student. Manoj, the staff member of MP Birla Foundation Higher Secondary School, had allegedly sexually abused a three-year-old child twice -- in June and September.
The parents had lodged a complaint with the police in September, but the arrest was made only after parents of other students held demonstrations following the rape of a four-year-old in G D Birla Centre for Education.
The principal of G D Birla Centre for Education is being questioned by the police since morning after the parents of the four-year-old filed a complaint with the police alleging that she had revealed the identity of their daughter in violation of law.
In a letter sent to nearly 4,000 parents of the school, principal S Nath jad named the student. The issue concerning [name of the child] is under investigation by the police," read the letter, which has shocked the parents. "This is unethical and illegal," said a parent who got the letter. "The naming of the girl demonstrates how callous the school is about the whole thing," said another parent.
The school's communication came after two of its teachers were arrested for the assault and it was shut down indefinitely. But lawyers say the principal's letter further exposes the school's callousness towards its students. The letter, they said, violates every legal norm and the provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, which prohibits naming of minor sexual assault survivors.
Ananya Chatterjee Chakraborti, the chief of the child rights body in the state, said it would showcause Ms Nath for identifying the girl. "This is absolutely illegal. She cannot name the child. We will show cause the Principal for violating the POCSO Act. How can she do it? She has violated the basic tenets of humanity," she was quoted as saying by news agency Press Trust of India.
The father of the student in GD Birla has demanded the resignation and arrest of the principal. Otherwise, he said activists would march to Lalbazaar, the police headquarters. He has also threatened to sue GD Birla, the corporate group that runs four schools in Kolkata and has several other business interests.