Ranchi, Dec 21 (IANS): The headmaster of a government school has been arrested under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act for forcing girl students to remove their 'dupatta'.

A committee constituted by the administration found the allegations levelled against the accused, identified as Vishwanath Ram, to be true, following which he was sent to jail in judicial custody on Wednesday.

According to sources, several female students of Classes 7-8 of the Government Upgraded Middle school, located in Pandu block of Daltonganj, had alleged that the accused would beat them with sticks if they failed to remove their dupattas before sitting in the class.

The locals had created a furore over the issue in the past.

Senior official Manoj Kumar and Sub-Divisional Magistrate Rajesh Kumar, following the directions of Deputy Commissioner Anjaneyulu Dodde, reached the school on Tuesday to investigate the matter.

During the probe, four students reiterated their complaints.

Some people, on the other hand, defended the headmaster and termed the accusation a result of local politics amongst the villagers.

An official Mahendra Prajapati lodged a written complaint against Ram at Pandu police station after the probe, following which he was arrested.