A 13 year-old student in Krishnagiri, Tamil Nadu, was allegedly gang-raped by three of her teachers. The incident   caused a lot of anger in the area, her family and others are protesting. The police have arrested the teachers and charged them under laws that protect children from this kind of crime.

The authorities have responded by arresting the accused teachers and initiating legal proceedings under the stringent Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

The girl had not attended school for more than a month, leading the principal to ask her mother about the reason. It was then that the mother told about the alleged assault. The principal quickly recommended that she should file a police report and notify the District Child Protection Officer.

Police said the crime occurred inside the school restroom on January 2. A senior police official, familiar with the case, revealed that the incident came to light on February 2, a month after the alleged assault, when the student’s parents informed the headmaster about what had happened.

Upon receiving the information, the District Education Officer (DEO) and the child helpline took immediate action against the teachers. "Following the complaint filed by the survivor’s parents, the three accused teachers have been suspended and arrested under various sections of the POCSO Act," he said.

The girl is receiving treatment at the hospital following the incident. Meanwhile, the all-women police team in Krishnagiri has arrested the three teachers involved, and they are currently in 15-day police custody. In late 2023, the Kotturpuram police in Tamil Nadu arrested 37-year-old Gnanasekaran, a biryani vendor, as the sole suspect in an assault case at Anna University. He had reportedly entered the university and attacked a second-year student.

According to the woman’s complaint, she was with her male friend behind a building on December 23 when Gnanasekaran approached and threatened them. He first attacked her friend, a third-year student, and then sexually assaulted her. The woman filed a complaint the following day at the Kotturpuram all-women police station.