Student rape: School gets new principal, old one given new role

In what appears to be a well-thought-out move to appease agonised parents, authorities of the school in Marathalli where a child was allegedly raped on the campus on July 3 sent out a circular on Thursday informing parents that they had inducted a new principal, Roshan M D’Souza.

However, in doing so, the previous principal – Alistair La Porte – was not ‘dismissed’ or ‘relieved’ of his job, and instead was given the post of Academic Advisor. “As principal of the school, Roshan D’Souza will be completely in charge of the administrative and academic functions of the school henceforth. In an endeavour to ensure continuity in our implementation of academic pursuits and to benefit the organisation with the experience that Alistair La Porte carries with regard to the CISCE, it was felt that he could contribute in that area and be part of our overall set-up at Marathalli in an advisory capacity as an Academic Advisor,” reads part of the circular.

Parents, however, seem to be having mixed reactions about the development, with some glad that the school was finally taking steps in the right direction, and others feeling aggrieved that the previous principal had been allowed to stay on in the school despite the incident of alleged rape of a six-year-old girl having occurred on campus during his tenure last month.

Several took to Facebook to express their sentiments. One parent, Juhi Garg, posted, “Good move, but the current principal still stays in the school in a different role. We all are feeling a bit happy about the move, but what is the reason the school is citing for this change? As much as I read the letter, it is not about accountability or taking any moral responsibility. Is it only to stop wagging tongues of parents? He is still being kept in the school in a different role, so is it his incompetence at the current role? What is the reason cited by management?”

Another parent, Ajitabh Saxena commented, “They cannot officially fire the current principal because there are no grounds as of today. The school is trying to repair its lost image. The current principal is like the ‘President of India’ - basically out of the game. I would not be surprised to see a resignation from him in a matter of months. First good move by the school and I appreciate it!”