The POCSO court in Coimbatore granted conditional bail to the Principal of a private school in the sexual abuse and suicide case of a Class 12 girl student by a male teacher of the same school.
Coimbatore: The judge at the POCSO Court in Coimbatore granted conditional bail to Meera Jackson (46), the Principal of a private school, who was arrested on charges of not revealing and initiating action on the sexual abuse complaint raised by the student against a male teacher of the same school.
The bail hearing of principal, Meera Jackson (46) was held at the Special POCSO Court here, on Wednesday. However, the father of the deceased student had filed a counter petition against granting bail to the accused stating that she would abscond, like earlier. The prosecution argued that the investigation of the case was still in the early stages and they were yet to identify if there were similar victims, they felt that the granting bail to the principal might hinder the investigation.
However, the advocate who argued for the Principal stressed that since she was not involved directly in the death of the student, she ought to be granted bail. After hearing the arguments put forth by both the parties, the POCSO court judge granted conditional bail to the Principal and directed her to sign at the West All-Women police station, every Sunday. The judge also ordered an interim compensation of Rs.5 lakh to the deceased’s family to be paid within 30 days by the state government.