Pandua, Aug. 8: A 50-year-old mathematics teacher was woken up from sleep and picked up by police from his home in Hooghly late last night for allegedly teasing girl students and using obscene language.

Police said Jagannath Ghosh, who has been teaching at the co-educational Haridaspur High School in Pandua for over two decades, was released on bail today.

He was arrested from his house at Mogra, about 70 km from Calcutta, on the basis of a complaint lodged by the secretary of the school managing committee, Abdus Samad.

He said that on July 23, a group of 69 girls from Classes IX and X submitted a deputation to the school authorities alleging that the teacher frequently teased girls and made obscene remarks. The girls had apparently complained that the “teacher enquired about their toilet habits and undergarments and also tried to touch them” for no reason.

“We inquired into the allegations and called a meeting last Saturday. We thought we will give the teacher a second chance if he apologised to the students. But he did not attend the meeting. We had no alternative but to refer the matter to the police,” Samad said.

The school had earlier indicted the teacher for lying about his MSc degree. Ghosh, whose wife Uttama teaches in a school at Bainchigram, also in Pandua, had moved court after that.

“He had earlier told us he was an MSc. But, on inquiry we have found out he is not. However, the matter is subjudice,” he added.

Ghosh’s mother, Jayabati, however, maintained that her soin had been falsely accused. “My son has been teaching in the school for nearly 25 years. There was no complaint against him all these years. My son is an MSc but he does not get the pay-scale of a post graduate. A court case is on in this regard. This is a careful attempt by the school authorities to malign my son,” she said.