In a shocking incident, a girl student of a city college was allegedly stripped and searched by a teacher who suspected her of carrying a cell phone.
In a shocking incident, a girl student of a city college was allegedly stripped and searched by a teacher who suspected her of carrying a cell phone.
The incident came to light only after the girl, a student of Prince Shri Venkateswara Arts and Science College, filed a complaint with University of Madras Vice Chancellor, alleging she was stripped and searched by a Physical Education Teacher.
The college has reportedly banned students from carrying cellphones.
"I have directed a committee to look into the matter. They will visit the college and file a report, based on which we will take necessary actions within our purview. We have not given any directions to colleges on any dress code or on use of cellphones on college campuses," Vice Chancellor G Thiruvasagam told PTI.
Students from across city colleges said the recent incident was an intrusion into their personal lives.
"The incident is ridiculous. If you do not want them to carry a phone, there are ways to check that. The college can use a metal detector or a signal jammer... not strip search someone. And using mobiles is important to students as we travel a lot and want to keep in touch with our families," said Chandrika Cycil,Psychology research student in Women's Christian College.
An MBA student of Tagore Engineering College said the incident is an abuse of power by the authorities.
"Even if they suspect something, they cannot strip search a student, that too in a college," said J Jayashankar.
"That was an invasion into a girl's privacy. If you find a girl violating a rule, you can confiscate her phone, but not frisk her and try to find out something from her bag or clothes. That's not fair as we need to use them after class hours," said Priyanka of a private college.
The College Principal was not available for comments when contacted.
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