Badlapur: The internet services resumed in Badlapur two days after protesters took to railway tracks in response to the alleged sexual assault at a school. Assistant Commissioner of Police Suresh Varade, on Thursday, appealed to everyone to not believe the rumours. He said that the rumours that have been spread are all false and that the cyber cell will not spare those found guilty of doing so. “If you have any questions or want to know anything, contact the police,” he said.
1500 Booked For Rail Roko Agitation
The Badlapur police (East, West and the Railway) have already booked 1,500 people for Tuesday’s Rail Roko agitation. Sixty people have been arrested so far – 38 by the Badlapur police and 22 by the railway police – for pelting stones and vandalising railway property. They were produced in Kalyan railway court on Thursday and have been remanded into judicial custody till September 9.
The Badlapur East police have launched a manhunt for 25 persons involved in vandalism at the railway station and the school building. Sources said these people are still at large.
Meanwhile, the family of the accused, Akshay Shinde, has been evicted from the village and their home of 20 years ransacked. Two remands have been granted against the accused by the special court for the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act for further investigation. He will be again produced in Kalyan special court on August 26.
Accused’s Mother Says, ‘Son Falsely Implicated’
The accused’s 44-year-old mother told the FPJ that her son is being falsely implicated in the case. “There is no truth in the allegations. He was falsely dragged into the matter. There is no merit in the alleged offence because my son was assigned to bathroom cleaning work only and none of the other tasks. There was an aaya who took the girls to the bathroom,” she said.
Shinde has been working as a housekeeper for several years. He married thrice in the last four years. Two wives left him shortly after marriage, stating that they could not adjust to family life with him. His third wife is five months pregnant and has been living with him and his family for the past year.
His mother said that the whole family, including her husband and second son, has been working at the school for the last two years. My other son joined 15 days ago (August 1) at a salary of Rs8,000. “We have been kicked out of the village and no police officer protected us. We have now made the railway station our home,” she said.
