Gurgaon: The Haryana department of secondary education has suspended the principal of Govt Girls Senior Secondary School (GGSSS), Jacubpura, and three teachers over alleged lapses in handling complaints of sexual harassment made by students against a science teacher, officials said.Principal Sushil Kumar and English teachers Minaxi, Bhawna and Neelam Shokeen were suspended through separate orders issued on July 13 and 14 by school education secretaries Jitender Kumar and Vijay Singh Dahiya.According to official sources, the inquiry found that the school administration, headed by Kumar, failed to follow the mandatory protocol after students raised complaints of sexual harassment and inappropriate behaviour. Instead of immediately constituting the mandatory school-level POCSO committee, the principal bypassed the prescribed procedure and forwarded unredacted statements of the minor students to block and district education authorities.Officials said this exposed the identities of the children and amounted to a violation of the confidentiality provisions under Section 23 of the POCSO Act.Following reports by TOI, the school subsequently constituted a POCSO committee comprising the three English teachers. However, officials alleged that the committee failed to ensure that the matter was reported to the police within the legally mandated 24-hour period, resulting in further procedural lapses.The violations prompted the Haryana State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (HSCPCR) to take suo motu cognisance of the matter. The commission conducted multiple hearings and summoned the district education officer (DEO) in July. Based on recommendations of the local Child Welfare Committee (CWC), which had sought the transfer of the officials concerned, the state govt suspended the four employees under Rule 5 of the Haryana Civil Services (Punishment & Appeal) Rules, 2016.During the suspension period, the headquarters of all four employees have been shifted to the district education office in Sirsa. They have been directed to mark their attendance there and cannot leave headquarters without prior permission. They will receive a subsistence allowance in accordance with Rule 83 of the Haryana Civil Services Rules.The directorate of secondary education has also directed the competent authority to prepare a formal charge sheet under Rule 7 within a week, paving the way for a departmental inquiry.
