The Kandivali police has arrested an English teacher who hit a 13-year-old girl on her back and pinched her on her stomach because she made many spelling errors in her notebook. The teacher from Yashwantrao Chavan High School has been booked for sexual assault, assault and molestation charges. He was teaching there for 17 years.
It is also learnt from the police that the teacher resorted to this type of punishment with other students too, including the male students.
Senior police inspector Mukund Pawar of Kandivali police station confirmed the above developments. The accused Sanjay Pawar was placed under arrest on Monday and was produced before a sessions court that sent him to judicial custody.
The Kandivali police has recorded statements of a few students including a female student who told them that Pawar as part of his teaching had resorted to beating them as well. The school is located in Iraniwadi on MG Road in Kandivali (west). On Thursday, around 7.30 am, Pawar checked the English notebook of the 13-year-old girl and found the errors. In front of the entire Class 8, comprising 27 students, Pawar hit her on the back and pinched her as well.
The girl, on reaching home, told her mother that the incident left her embarrassed in front of other students. Wasting no time, her parents immediately approached he principal of the school who expressed “inability” to initiate action against the teacher and instead suggested they should approach the police.
Taking his advice, the parents approached the Kandivali police who registered an FIR under sections 354 (Assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty), 323 (Punishment for voluntarily causing hurt) and section 8 (sexual assault) of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (Pocso). Even though the teacher was sent to judicial custody and was later granted bail, he will have to be present before the Kandivali police station for further investigation.
