Headmistress gets unique punishment for instigating student to file false sexual harassment compliant

The Madras High Court bench in Madurai has ordered a headmistress of a government school to uproot prosopis juliflora trees in 2,400 sqft as a punishment for instigating a girl student to file a false sexual harassment complaint against three teachers.

Prema, Headmistress of SSAM Government Higher Secondary School in Ramanathapuram district, to wreak vengeance on the three teachers for sending representations to authorities about her poor quality of teaching, instigated the girl to file a false complaint against them.

The teachers, who were transferred based on the complaint of the student, sought the high court’s direction to set aside the transfer orders.

Justice S Vaidhyanthan, after holding in-camera proceedings, found that with ulterior motive, the headmistress instigated the girl to lodge complaints against the teachers resulting in their transfer.

“The job of a teacher was equivalent to that of a sculptor, who shapes a stone into a beautiful sculpture. Her duty is to shape the students as good citizens. Because of involvement of reckless and unprincipled reprobate like the headmistress, the teachers lost their reputation in the society.”

He said that transferring skilled teachers on false charges was detrimental to students and the headmistress should remove prosopis juliflora trees in a 2,400 sqft area as a punishment and she should be transferred to a far off place.