Lady teacher, 41, student held after elopement

Cherthala: A 41-year-old teacher and her Class 10 male student who went missing from Thannermukkam in Alappuzha have been held in Chennai. A police team from Cherthala, which tracked the teacher and the boy through their cell phones, picked them up in Chennai in the wee hours of Friday.

Dorony Thampi, a resident of Ward 24 of Cherthala municipality, teaches at a private English medium school at Thannermukkam. She left the place along with her student last Sunday.

The teacher and the student reached Chennai on a private bus on Monday. They first stayed in a hotel but rented a house later, paying an advance of Rs 40,000. She sold her gold anklet to raise Rs 59,000 for expenses, from which the advance was paid. The police say the duo could be traced as they bought a SIM card in Chennai and used it.

Before eloping, Dorony had arrived at the student's house. As she left, he accompanied her to the bus stop. However, they together took a bus to Cherthala and from there to Thiruvananthapuram. They switched off their cell phones as they travelled.

The police said Dorony has been charged with abduction of the student. A court has granted the teacher bail after remanding her first. The Child Welfare Committee, meanwhile, entrusted the boy to his parents.

Dorony had earlier presented the student with a shirt and a mobile phone. As his parents enquired about it, she told them it is just a teacher-student relationship. The teacher is estranged from her husband and has a 10-year-old son who lives with the father.