ranchi

Updated: Dec 01, 2017 19:26 IST

A 65-year-old principal of a private school in Jharkhand’s Koderma district was arrested on Friday for allegedly performing oral sex with a seven-year-old upper kindergarten girl student on several occasions.

“Tilaiya Public School principal S Xavier alias Francis Xavier, a resident of Jheel Garden, Kolkata, confessed to the crime, admitting that he had been sexually abusing the girl on several occasions,” said DSP Anil Shankar.

S Xavier, principal of Tilaya Public School, was arrested on charge of forcing a minor girl for oral sex in Koderma on Friday. ( HT PHOTO )

Xavier has been charged under POCSO sections and sent to judicial custody.

The matter came to light when the girl disclosed the incident to her parents on November 29 after she was abused again. Her parents soon lodged a complaint with the Tilaiya police station.

The parents complained that the principal, who also teaches English, took their daughter to the school’s washroom when no one was there on Thursday. He undressed himself and forcibly pulled out the girl’s cloths. When she cried, he threatened her and made her obey him.

He then forced her to perform oral sex, the parents said, adding that he had done the same previously also.

“The girl explained perfectly what had happened with her in the past several days. This is going to be strong evidence against the accused,” police said, adding that the girl was sent for medical examination to complete all legal formalities.

Jharkhand registered a spurt in crime against children in 2016 recording 717 cases in comparison to 406 cases in 2015, as per the national crime record bureau (NCRB), 2016, report released on Thursday.

“The incident raised an alarm bell for schools where children spend a substantial time after home. It’s a horrifying incident and only a mentally ill person can act in such a manner. We have recently seen the murders at Ryan Public School in Gurgaon this year and at a reputed residential private school in Ranchi last year. The school must be asked to thoroughly inspect the antecedents and character of its teachers and staffs including bus drivers and helpers,” said Jharkhand Parents’ Association president, Ajay Rai.

Following the Ryan Public School incident, the district administrations in Jharkhand had launched a special drive to check security systems in school.