A school principal and her husband have been charged with murder after 23 children died from eating pesticide-contaminated lunches in July at the school in eastern India, police said Tuesday.
The trial of Meena Kumari and her husband was expected to begin soon, said police officer Varun Kumar Sinha. They were arrested and could face the death penalty if convicted.
Investigating police officer Raj Kaushal said the principals husband, opposition lawmaker Arjun Rai, stored pesticide at the school that was for use at his agricultural farm. The charge sheet filed in a court in Bihar state on Sunday said the chef cooked with it by mistake.
Read more: Cooks recount horror of Indian school lunch deaths
The children who died were between ages 5 and 12.
The schools cooks have told authorities that the principal controlled the food for the government-provided free daily lunch. One of the cooks told police investigators that the cooking oil appeared different than usual, but that the principal told her to use it anyway.
Principal, husband charged with murder over India school lunch poisonings - National | Globalnews.ca
The trial of Meena Kumari and her husband was expected to begin soon, said police officer Varun Kumar Sinha. They were arrested and could face the death penalty if convicted.
Investigating police officer Raj Kaushal said the principals husband, opposition lawmaker Arjun Rai, stored pesticide at the school that was for use at his agricultural farm. The charge sheet filed in a court in Bihar state on Sunday said the chef cooked with it by mistake.
Read more: Cooks recount horror of Indian school lunch deaths
The children who died were between ages 5 and 12.
The schools cooks have told authorities that the principal controlled the food for the government-provided free daily lunch. One of the cooks told police investigators that the cooking oil appeared different than usual, but that the principal told her to use it anyway.
Principal, husband charged with murder over India school lunch poisonings - National | Globalnews.ca