A 40-year-old female teacher from a well-known Mumbai school has been arrested. She is accused of sexually assaulting a 16-year-old male student multiple times over the past year. The teacher, who is married and also has children, faces serious charges under laws designed to protect children from sexual offences (POCSO Act), as well as the Juvenile Justice Act and the Indian Penal Code. The school has not yet commented on the situation.

Police state the arrested woman is an English teacher who taught the student when he was in Class 11. She told police she was attracted to him during meetings to organize a dance group for the school's annual function in December 2023. She reportedly made sexual gestures towards him in January 2024.

Initially, the student was hesitant and tried to avoid her. A police officer, who wished to remain anonymous, said the teacher then asked a female friend, who does not work at the school, for help. This friend has also been charged. She reportedly told the minor that relationships between older women and teenage boys are "quite common." The accused teacher's friend reportedly convinced the student that he and the teacher were "made for each other," leading the student to agree to meet the teacher.

Police say the teacher picked up the boy in a car and drove him to a private location. There, she allegedly forcefully undressed him and sexually assaulted him. When the student became anxious in the following days, she reportedly gave him anti-anxiety pills. The car has been taken by the police as evidence. Another officer shared that the teacher would also get the student drunk before taking him to five-star hotels in South Mumbai and near the airport, where she forced him into sexual acts.

The incidents came to light when the student's family noticed a change in his behaviour and confronted him. He told them what was happening. Initially, the family decided to keep it quiet, hoping the teacher would stop bothering him once he graduated. However, the situation worsened. After the student finished Class 12 earlier this year, the teacher contacted him again through her household staff, asking him to meet her. At this point, the family decided to report the case to the police. Police have filed a case under various sections of the POCSO Act (which deals with sexual assault on children), as well as parts of the Indian Penal Code and the Juvenile Justice Act.