Headmaster and teacher of Karnataka govt school suspended over sexual harassment case
Shivamogga: A 45-year-old teacher and the headmaster of a Government school in Karnataka's Shivamogga district have been suspended on charges of sexual harassment and dereliction of duty, respectively, officials said on Monday.
The teacher of the school at Soppinakeri village in Shikaripura taluk was accused of sexually harassing female students aged between nine and 12 for the past few months.
The headmaster did not take action against him despite the issue being brought to his attention, they said.
The matter came to the notice of the senior education department officials on December five following which a detailed probe into the allegations levelled against the teacher was taken up, officials said.
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Shivamogga Deputy Director of Public Instructions C R Parameshwarappa told PTI that the inquiry was ordered based on the complaints received from the parents of the students and School Development and Management Committee members.
The male teacher and the headmaster were suspended on Friday based on the preliminary report submitted by the block education officer of Shikaripura.
The charge against the headmaster, who was not involved in the harassment of students, is that he never took action against the accused teacher nor did he report the matter to any of the higher authorities despite being in the know of the matter, officials said.
''The headmaster attempted to suppress the matter which is why he was also suspended in connection with the incident. A detailed investigation is underway'', Parameshwarappa added.
According to officials, the School Development and Management Committee members also approached a senior officer at the Shikaripura rural police station following which they registered a case under the Protection of Children Against Sexual Offences Act against the accused teacher on December 9.
The matter has also been intimated to the Child Welfare Committee (CWC).
As part of police investigation, the statements of the girl students have been recorded and medical examination of the victims done.
Further action will be taken based on the report of the CWC, the officials added.
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Trump says EU has until July 4 to approve last year's trade deal or it will face higher tariffs
Washington (AP): President Donald Trump has said in a social media post that goods from the European Union would face higher tariff rates if the 27-member bloc fails to approve last year's trade framework by July 4.
The announcement on Thursday appeared to be a deadline extension after the president said last Friday that EU autos would face a higher 25 per cent tariff starting this week. Trump made the updated announcement after what he described as a "great call" with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
Still, the US president was displeased that the European Parliament had yet to finalize the trade arrangement reached last year, which was further complicated in February by the US Supreme Court ruling that Trump lacked the legal authority to declare an economic emergency to impose the initial tariffs used to pressure the EU into talks.
"A promise was made that the EU would deliver their side of the Deal and, as per Agreement, cut their Tariffs to ZERO!" Trump posted. "I agreed to give her until our Country's 250th Birthday or, unfortunately, their Tariffs would immediately jump to much higher levels."
It was unclear from the post whether Trump was implying that the tariff rates would jump on all EU goods or the increase would only apply to autos.
His latest statement indicates he might be backing away from his earlier threat on EU autos by giving the European Parliament several more weeks to approve the agreement.
Under the original terms of the framework, the US would charge a 15 per cent tax on most goods imported from the EU.
But since the Supreme Court ruling, the administration has levied a 10 per cent tariff while investigating trade imbalances and national security issues, aiming to put in new tariffs to make up for lost revenues.
