Hyderabad: A government primary school headmaster in Bhadradri-Kothagudem district of Telangana was sentenced to 20 years in jail along with a fine of Rs 11,000 for raping five minor girls who were studying in his school.
The judgement was given on August 27 by a fast-track court meant for the disposal of the rape and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act’s cases, nine months after the forty year old accused was arrested on the charges of repeatedly raping minor girls inside the school.
As reported by The Times of India (TOI), the court examined 24 witnesses during the trial. “The statements provided by the survivors of the assault and medical reports furnished by the doctor were aided chiefly by one of the minors speaking against the assault, who played a key role in securing the conviction,” remarked Phani Kumar, the senior public prosecutor of the case.
The headmaster was arrested in December 2020 for raping five girls between the ages of seven and 11 and police officials informed TOI that he had been abusing them since August of the same year.
The incident came to light when one of the survivors, a girl of merely seven years of age, fell ill due to repeated assaults and had to be hospitalized. The sub-inspector of Laxmidevpally, Anjaiah, informed TOI that she opened up to her mother post the hospitalization.
Eight staffers, including colleagues of the accused, were also booked for not reporting about the offense despite having knowledge about the crime.