Teacher gets 2-year's RI in child sex abuse case

In a rare case of conviction and sentencing for child sexual abuse, a teacher of a school run by a private trust for destitute children in Tiruvallur district, Tamil Nadu, has been sentenced for two years rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs 10,000. A magistrate court in Tiruvallur recently convicted and sentenced Palanisamy, a physics teacher, who sexually abused a girl student in the laboratory during the academic year 2006-07.

The court ruling was a culmination of a five-year battle that traumatised the child, during which she was forced to change schools.

Amid several obstacles and alleged threats to her family, the case was pursued thanks to her courage and the efforts of a resolute lawyer, M Sreedhar, who first filed a private complaint before the judicial magistrate-I of Tiruvallur, sources said.

 The case dragged on for several years including taking the matter to the Madras High Court seeking its intervention. However, the verdict came last week in what is termed as one of the “very few cases of child sexual abuse” to reach the courts where the victim was meted out justice. The trust when contacted on Thursday said, “the concerned teacher was suspended way back in 2006....we have nothing to do with the case.”