Chennai: The National Human Rights Commission in Puducherry recently came down heavily on the Union Territory for reinstating four teachers who were suspended for forcing girl students to watch pornography in school nearly two years ago. Member of NHRC Justice D. Murugesan, in a camp sitting held in Puducherry for the first time on April 28, had also directed the Government and police to expedite departmental enquiry and criminal cases registered against them.

Member of NHRC Justice D. Murugesan pulled up Puducherry Education Secretary, E. Vallavan, when he submitted that trained graduate teachers Jude Anbalagan, Siva Kumar and Abdul Malik and physical education teacher Abdul Rasheed of the Thiru Vi Ka government high school, Arumparthapuram, were reinstated abiding by an office memorandum.

Based on newspaper reports on incidents of the teachers directing the girl students of standards 8 and 9 to watch pornographic pictures and videos, social activist, Padam Narayanan sent representations to National Commission for Protection of Children and NHRC to take up the matter. After much persuasion, in December 2013, the police registered cases against the teachers on charges of watching pornographic content on the school computer.

The police booked them following a direction from the child welfare committee (CWC), Puducherry. The teachers were also accused of forcing girls to watch porn and sexually abusing them. Narayanan tod DC “the Union Government has been protecting the accused and trying to dilute the heinous crimes committed by none other than teachers, who should live exemplary lives.” Though the CB-CID informed NHRC that they have incriminating evidence against the teachers, the state government and police have planned to close the case. The official informed the Commission that the teachers were in a different school.

He suspected that the parents of the children were threatened not to pursue the case and hence they had not filed any written statements against the teachers. Social activist, TMN Deepak said the Union Territory has been protecting the teachers. Instead of protecting and counseling the students and parents, the government has been showing undue interest in protecting the accused, he added.

CWC Chairperson, Puducherry, Vidyaa Ramkumar, said “I was shocked to note that they were reinstated by the department. Such incidents should not occur to any child and guilty must be punished, she said.

While adjourning the matter to six weeks, justice Murugesan directed the government to pay a compensation of Rs 50,000 to the victims. Justice Murugesan, during three-day sitting camp heard 41 cases of human rights violations concerning