PATNA: Two former women teachers of a noted English-medium private school, Nutan Joseph and Indu Anand, have been sentenced to ten years and seven years of rigorous imprisonment respectively for sexually assaulting a five-year-old girl student inside the classroom almost two years back.The special court of Protection of Children from Sexual offences (POCSO) Act of judge Ravindra Nath Tripathi on Friday also slapped a fine of Rs20,000 on each of them under different sections of IPC and POCSO Act.The victim at that time was studying in LKG at the city school near Gandhi Maidan. Her parents came to know about it when she complained of acute abdominal pain and was taken to three different gynaecologists who diagnosed that she had received injury in her private parts.The victim later told her mother that Nutan used to insert fingers in her private parts while Indu watched her colleague’s activities. The mother had lodged an FIR with the women’s police station against Nutan and Indu on November 3, 2016 and they were arrested on November 4 from Sadaquat Ashram and Chakaram localities. The incident had created much uproar in the city.Special public prosecutor Suresh Chandra Prasad said Nutan had sexually assaulted her student on multiple occasions. “She was awarded ten years imprisonment with Rs10,000 fine under Section 6 (aggravated penetrative sexual assault ) of POCSO Act,” Prasad said.“Indu had sexually assaulted the student once and was sentenced seven years imprisonment and Rs10,000 fine under Section 4 (penetrative sexual assault) of POCSO Act,” he said, adding both were also awarded five years jail and Rs10,000 fine under Sections 377 (unnatural sexual offences) and 34 (common intention) of IPC, respectively. The prosecutor said both the jail terms would run concurrently. He said Indu used to watch Nutan’s act of sexually assaulting the victim inside the classroom.He said seven witnesses, including the victim’s parents, were examined during the course of trial. “The parents’ statements played a crucial role in the case,” he added.

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