Woman cook of Telangana govt. girls’ hostel booked for coercing student into ‘wealth ritual’

Manthani police have booked a woman cook of a government girls’ hostel and another person under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act for allegedly taking a picture of a 15-year-old girl student in a bid to lure her with promise of wealth if she participated in a ‘strange ritual’.

According to sources, the cook took the girl, a class X student, to her room in front of the hostel in Manthani town of Peddapalli district a week ago. Driven by superstitious beliefs, she allegedly made a bid to persuade the girl to perform a ‘nude ritual’ to become ‘wealthy’. The cook reportedly called a person to her room and asked him to take a picture of the girl on his mobile phone.

Perturbed over this, the panic-stricken girl went to her relative’s house in Manthani and narrated the incident. Her parents then lodged a complaint with the hostel warden in this connection on Monday.

Following the complaint, the local police have registered a case under POCSO Act and launched a detailed investigation into the incident.

Published - November 27, 2024 12:43 am IST