UP govt school teacher bookedunder Pocso for molesting girls

Bareilly: A Pocso case has been slapped against a govt school teacher for molesting several girl students of classes 6 to 8 at a composite school in Lakhimpur Kheri, police said. Notably, parents of the affected students lodged a complaint at a local thana accusing the assistant teacher of "inappropriate behaviour" over the past few months.The teacher, who hails from Ghaziabad, was suspended by Basic Shiksha Adhikari (BSA) on Friday. BSA Praveen Kumar Tiwari said, "A departmental inquiry was launched against the accused, and strict action will follow if proven guilty."According to the FIR, the teacher used to call the girls under the pretext of checking their notebooks, showed them obscene images and then touched them inappropriately. He also threatened to kill them if they resisted, the FIR stated.While the initial complaint mentioned three victims, police investigation later found that at least nine girls were subjected to similar acts by the accused teacher. Around 150 students were enrolled in the school.Kheri deputy SP, Jitendra Parihar, added that the accused, who joined the school two years ago through a mutual transfer from Dhaurhara, is currently on the run, with teams actively looking for him.An officer, privy to the case, said, "The FIR was registered under sections of the Pocso Act. Statements from three students have been recorded so far."