Principal charged over 23 pesticide lunch deaths

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.

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.

Police officer Raj Kaushal said the principal’s 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 said the chef cooked with it by mistake.