School principal in India suspended after being filmed swimming with female students
The principal took over 150 students on a trip to the Bhadaj dam, located about 2 km from the school. From the group, about 20 to 25 female students entered the water in the reservoir alongside the principal. Documentation of the event went viral and led to calls to fire the educator.
Lal Chand Meena, the principal of the government school in the town of Padak Chapli in the Alwar district of India, was suspended from his position by order of the state's director of secondary education, after a report was received from the regional education officer that the principal swam with female students while shirtless.
At the same time, a three-member investigation committee was established to examine the circumstances of the incident and the claims that arose following the video. According to Manoj Sharma, the education officer in the Alwar district, local residents raised "serious allegations" following the incident. The investigation was opened after a video of the event was widely circulated and sparked public outrage.
The incident occurred on August 15, after India's Independence Day celebrations at the school. According to reports, the principal led more than 150 students on a trip to the Bhadaj dam, located about 2 km from the school, via a path passing through a wooded area. Among the participants were female students from 9th to 12th grade. From the group, about 20 to 25 female students entered the water alongside the principal. Local youths documented what was happening on mobile phones and distributed the videos on social media. Following the distribution, the information reached residents, the police, and education authorities, and it was decided to open an official investigation.
According to Zee News, an Indian news site, the video shows the principal swimming in the water reservoir alongside female students. It is alleged that in some cases he lifted female students in his arms, while shirtless, and at the same time tried to teach them how to swim.
The allegations do not end with the principal's conduct. Residents and students raised concerns regarding the safety of the trip and claimed that the students entered the water without life jackets and without proper safety supervision. It is further alleged that some of the female students did not know how to swim and that no female teacher accompanied the students on the trip.
According to residents, the dam bank is narrow, with a width ranging between 1.5 and 1.8 meters. They also claimed that drowning incidents had occurred at the site in the past and that access to the dam area had been restricted for almost four years due to safety hazards.
