india

Updated: Nov 05, 2016 16:33 IST

Two female teachers of an English medium school in Patna were arrested on Saturday on charges of sexually assaulting a kindergarten girl student.

They were later sent to judicial custody.

The arrests were made after police carried out an investigation on the basis of a complaint filed by the parents of the victim, who had narrated her woes to her mother a few days back.

The victim, student of prestigious St Xavier’s School, in her statement to the police, had said that she was sexually molested by one of her teachers- whom she referred as ‘’ Choti Miss’’- many times in past one month. Her parents, however, claimed their daughter had been subjected to the ordeal by two female teachers inside the school premises.

Police said, the victim had talked about being sexually assaulted inside her classroom and an adjoining room.

A case has been registered in this regard at the women police station at Gandhi Maidan under various sections of POCSO (protection of children from sexual offenses).

Police have also taken samples of clothes of the victim for FSL tests even as a few senior faculty members of the school were contacted to ascertain whether there was any complicity of other teachers in the heinous act.

Senior SP Manu Maharaaj and city SP (central) Chandan Kumar Kushwaha told HT that the two teachers arrested in the case were identified as Nutan Joseph and Indu. They said, both the teachers during their interrogation denied having molested the five-year-old student and dubbed the charges baseless.

“We are trying to find out whether there was any involvement of a male teacher in the incident. The investigations are still on,” said, a senior police officer, involved in the investigations.

Kushwaha added that the medical examination of the minor had confirmed sexual assault and an old rupture was found in her private parts. The medical tests, police said, also indicated that the victim could have been repeatedly assaulted.

“We have recorded the statement of the victim and her parents, who have given vivid details of how their ward was tormented by two female teachers for long,” said a senior police officer. He added the victim had identified two female teachers, arrested on Friday, through pictures shown to her by her parents after the matter came to light.

However, sources said the five-year old had not identified the female teachers during her interaction with women cops who had tried to cull information from the kid about her alleged tormentors, after the complaint was filed.

“It appears, the five-year old is under mental stress and apparently not able to identify the culprits in the presence of the police. At the moment, we have carried investigations on the basis of the statement of the victim’s parents. But, if we find new facts, further action would be taken,” said an IG rank officer.

Senior cops admit they are baffled by the latest incident of sexual assault on the minor, terming it as an act of “perversion and lesbianism” in some ways.

“The perpetrators could be termed mentally sick and also pervert in nature. Or else, how could a five-year old be treated in such a shabby way,” said a woman police officer, posted at the state headquarter.