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Bengaluru school headmaster, boxing coach held for alleged sexual abuse of minors
The 16-year-old student who was sexually abused by the headmaster was supposed to start Class 10 this academic year.
A government school headmaster, nearing retirement, and a 50-year-old boxing coach were arrested in separate cases in Bengaluru for sexually assaulting a high school student and a female athlete, respectively. The two were remanded in 14-day judicial custody on Saturday.
The accused headmaster was arrested on Friday for allegedly impregnating the victim, a 16-year-old student who completed her Class 9. Investigations revealed the abuse had been ongoing for approximately a year.
According to an officer, the incident came to light when the girl, who was supposed to start Class 10 this academic year, vomited and complained of dizziness. “The parents of the victim took her to a hospital, where the sexual assault was confirmed, and found that their daughter was one-and-a-half months pregnant. They filed a police complaint later. If it were not summer holidays, the headmaster would have suppressed it,” the officer said. Based on the complaint by the minor victim’s parents, the police registered a case under relevant sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso).
The officer confirmed that a First Information Report (FIR) has been registered and medico-legal proceedings are underway.
The Child Welfare Committee, Bengaluru North, has arranged a temporary shelter for the girl. Additionally, the District Child Protection Officer of Bengaluru North (Yelahanka) has been directed to conduct an investigation and take appropriate action in the matter.
Boxing coach sexually assaults athlete
In the second case, a 50-year-old boxing coach has been arrested for allegedly sexually harassing a 17-year-old female athlete under his training at a club in Kanteerava Stadium, Bengaluru.
The accused, a Tamil Nadu native, was taken into custody on Saturday following a complaint lodged by the victim’s mother.
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The girl, a first-year PUC student, has been training at the club for nearly a decade. The accused joined the club four years ago and allegedly began misconduct shortly after. According to the complaint, the harassment intensified over the last five to six months.
On May 17, during a boxing championship in Chennai, the coach allegedly summoned the girl to his private room and touched her inappropriately despite her resistance. Similar incidents were said to have occurred previously during training sessions in Bengaluru, said a police officer.
The victim’s family said in a statement that she had stayed silent out of fear and alleged threats from the coach. The mother had earlier raised concerns with the club’s committee, but the misconduct continued. The family only learned the full extent of the abuse when the girl finally came forward.
A case has been registered under sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act and Section 351 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). The accused has been lodged at Parappana Agrahara Central Prison
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