‘Made us sit on lap’: Bihar girls accuse headmaster of entering washroom, harassing

Allegations of a headmaster's inappropriate actions have surfaced at a Nawada government school.

PATNA: Allegations by girl students of a government school in Nawada that their headmaster entered their washroom and touched them inappropriately have raised serious questions over the safety of minors inside educational institutions, coming a day after a Class X student was allegedly molested on a road in Jamui.The back-to-back incidents have triggered outrage, with Congress leader Pawan Khera on Tuesday questioning the safety and dignity of women and girls in Bihar.In a video shared by Khera on social media, the girls are seen crying and alleging that the headmaster entered their washroom, picked them up and made them sit on his lap. The students, accompanied by their parents, had staged a protest on the school campus on September 18.

Following the allegations, the headmaster was arrested under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.The Nawada incident allegedly took place a day before the Jamui episode, in which a Class X student was allegedly sexually harassed on the road by a group of men. Her friend was also physically assaulted. A video of the incident, which went viral on social media, showed the girls pleading with the accused to spare them as the alleged harassment continued.

The incidents have brought the safety of minor girls into sharp focus, with concerns being raised over their vulnerability both in public spaces and within schools, where they are expected to be protected.Targeting the BJP government in Bihar, Khera said the two incidents reflected an “utterly unacceptable standard of safety and dignity for women and girls”.“The BJP in Bihar must paint its face black,” he wrote on X, referring to the alleged harassment in Jamui and the accusations against the school headmaster in Nawada.The two cases have intensified scrutiny of safeguards for school-going girls and women in public spaces, as well as the need for accountability in cases of alleged sexual harassment.