The Gauhati High Court has dismissed the appeal of a government school teacher convicted for sexually harassing his minor student under the guise of a medical check-up. Justice Pranjal Das, delivering the judgment on July 20, 2026, upheld the trial court's order and refused to interfere with the sentence already served by the appellant.
Background of the Case
The case goes back to February 2022, in a village school under Mon district, Nagaland. According to the prosecution, the appellant, a science teacher at a government middle school, called a minor girl and her cousin to his residence in the evening, supposedly for school admission formalities. Once there, he reportedly told the girl he needed to conduct a medical check-up on her, using a stethoscope he kept in his room.
As per the girl's testimony, she was asked to lie down on a bed inside the room. The teacher placed the stethoscope on his ears but, according to her statement, never actually used it on her body. Instead, he began touching her abdomen and breast with his hands. He then reportedly put his hand inside her clothing and touched her private parts. After this, he applied some ointment on her stomach, even though she had not complained of any illness or pain.
Her cousin, who had accompanied her, was seated on a bench inside the same room, but with his back towards the examination area, he could not see exactly what was happening. Feeling uneasy, he stepped out briefly to relieve himself, and by the time he returned, the so-called check-up was already over.
The girl did not say anything on the way back home, too shy and shaken to speak. It was only after reaching home, when she insisted on taking a bath despite the cold weather and then broke down crying and shivering, that her mother sensed something was wrong. On being questioned repeatedly, the girl finally narrated what had happened at the teacher's house.
The girl later told her mother that the teacher had touched her inappropriately during this so-called examination, causing her severe distress. A Zero FIR was lodged, and the case was registered under Sections 376(B)/354 IPC read with Section 6 of the POCSO Act. After investigation, the teacher was chargesheeted under Section 354 IPC read with Section 8 of the POCSO Act.
The Special Judge (POCSO), Mon, eventually convicted him - not under the charged sections, but under Section 354(A)(1)(i) IPC read with Section 12 of the POCSO Act, sentencing him to one year, one month and three weeks in prison. The teacher challenged this conviction before the High Court.
Court's Observations
Justice Das went through the testimonies of the victim, her mother, and her cousin brother carefully. He noted that the girl's account in her examination-in-chief was clear and stayed steady even during cross-examination.
The bench observed that the victim herself had stated the teacher placed the stethoscope on his ears but never actually used it while touching her body - a detail the Court found telling.
"It is clear from her testimony that not only was the appellant not a doctor qualified to conduct medical examination, but the use of the stethoscope at the time of examination was merely a pretext," the Court noted in its judgment.
The Court also pointed out that the appellant, during his statement under Section 313 CrPC, had claimed the stethoscope was non-functional and kept only as a teaching aid - a claim the judge found to contradict his own defence, since it confirmed the instrument was never meant for any genuine medical use.
Justice Das held that the appellant's actions squarely fell within Section 11(ii) of the POCSO Act, which covers making a child expose part of her body with sexual intent. The judgment observed that the subsequent acts of touching clearly showed the intent behind exposing the child's body was sexual in nature.
The Court also examined case laws cited by both sides but found none of them applicable to alter the outcome, since the facts here fit squarely within the framework of sexual harassment under the POCSO Act.
Decision
The Gauhati High Court upheld the conviction and sentence handed down by the trial court, finding no infirmity in the judgment. The Court noted that the sentence was, if anything, on the lower side given the nature of the act committed against a minor who had approached the appellant for help with her school admission.
The criminal appeal was accordingly dismissed and disposed of.
Case Details
- Case Title: X vs. The State of Nagaland and Anr.
- Case Number: CRAPL/1/2023
- Judge: Hon'ble Mr. Justice Pranjal Das
- Decision Date: July 20, 2026
