Action against rape: Police to maintain dossier on male teachers in Raichur
Raichur: Beware male teachers! Your every activity, both inside the class rooms and outside, is being watched by the vigilant eyes of the police.
The recent spurt in sexual harassment and rape cases all over the state, especially in schools and colleges, has prompted the Raichur police prepare a dossier on all male teachers in the district.
Besides initiating a number of measures to curb sexual harassment cases, Raichur Superintendent of Police M.N. Nagaraj has directed the Deputy Director of Public Instruction to furnish a list of all male teachers working under his jurisdiction in the district.
Mr Nagaraj said that they already have a list of people from all over the country who are involved in various offences, including gambling and sexual harassment. “If we enter the names of people along with their father’s name and place of birth in the computer, we get details of cases registered against them. If we find such teachers in the list, we can keep track of them and take precautionary measures,” he said.
The police feel such steps are necessary as many cases of sexual harassment of female teachers by their male colleagues, especially in rural areas, go unreported. “It is a fact that some female teachers are harassed by their colleagues. Many a time, such cases don’t come to light and in some instances, cases cannot be built against the guilty and due punishment not given because of lack of proper records about their misdeeds. This is also true of cases where male teachers would have indulged in paedophilia,” police sources said.
Besides visiting schools and colleges regularly and stepping up patrolling around educational institutions, the police propose to get CCTV cameras installed in all major traffic junctions, parks and gardens, besides schools, colleges and women’s hostels with the involvement of education department.
While 126 cases of sexual harassment and rape were registered in 2012, the figure for the corresponding period of 2013 was 156. So far this year, 96 cases have been registered in the district.
Prof S.S. Devarkal, well-known academic and principal of a reputed educational institution, defended the police action, saying an “extraordinary” situation prevailed in the country. “There is a need to maintain a dossier on the character and background of each and every male teacher, from both government and private schools. But the issue of maintaining a dossier on each teacher is a sensitive issue and needs to be handled confidentially with care. This would help keep an extra vigil on male teachers who are in the nature of committing paedophilia,” he said.
