Headmaster arrested for sexual assault in Coimbatore

COIMBATORE: Police on Wednesday night arrested the headmaster of a panchayat union primary school near Negamam in the district for sexually assaulting three girl students.
The headmaster, A Mahaliappan, 52, of Sultanpet, has been booked under sections 9 (commits sexual assault) and 10 (punishment for commits aggravated sexual assault) of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012. Mahaliappan was remanded in judicial custody and lodged in the Coimbatore Central Prison.
Santhamani, a counsellor from the district child protection office, conducted an inquiry with the girls on Wednesday. The girls told Santhamani that the headmaster had touched them on several occasions with a “bad intention.”
Based on the counsellor’s complaint, the Negamam police registered a case and arrested the headmaster who has been working at the school for the past 10 years.
Two days ago, a group of parents blocked the road near Negamam demanding the arrest of the headmaster. However, they refused to lodge a police complaint against the headmaster.
The All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA) and the Students Federation of India (SFI) had petitioned superintendent of police Sujit Kumar seeking action against the headmaster.
Meanwhile, the educational department transferred the headmaster to another school.
(The victim's identity has not been revealed to protect her privacy as per Supreme Court directives on cases related to sexual assault)