TEAM HERALD
bureau@herald-goa.com
VASCO: Was the school headmistress guilty of a delay in notifying the police of the sexual assault on the seven-year-old student or was she simply following an academic protocol of the school management?
While the headmistress has come under fire from various quarters for her alleged negligence and lapses in the incident, many in the port town have begun suggesting that the management’s strong control on the school had led the school headmistress to notify the police of the crime, only after getting an approval from the school management, thereby wasting valuable time in the process.
Law enforcement agencies investigating the case are also probing this angle and had summoned members of the school management for questioning on Friday, to ascertain if the management had also been guilty of a delay in alerting the police of the crime.
Sources in the school informed Herald that the school headmistress immediately informed the management about the incident.
“On her own, the headmistress would never have acted in the matter. The headmistress had acted on the direction of the management to safeguard the reputation of the school. In fact, none of the three headmistresses of the school can move even a pin without the permission of the management, which is being controlled by a few employees. The headmistress, teachers and the ayah, who acted under directions from the school management, are now being made scapegoats in the incident,” claimed the source.
“The fact that management committee members gave evasive answers during the school meeting on Thursday itself suggests that the management is also answerable to the police on its role in the delay. The police should also find out if the teachers had acted on instructions of the management to wash off the bloodstains and innerwear of the victim,” the source added.
When contacted, an official of the school management declined to agree or disagree on the management’s alleged role in leading to the school’s delay in notifying the police of the incident.
“At this stage, I do not want to comment as police investigations are on and my remarks will only hamper the investigation,” the official said.
“However, I have appointed a lady legal officer to ascertain the cause of all lapses and we will then initiate strict action against all those found guilty,” said the official.
Asked if the management had instructed the teachers to wash off the bloodstains and innerwear of the victim, the official said: “I was not aware of this act.”
