Mumbai: While announcing relief to the families of Badlapur victims in the alleged sexual assault case, state education minister Deepak Kesarkar, on Monday, said that the grandparents of one girl approached the class teacher Dipali Deshpande, but she did not report it to the police.
The principal, Archana Athawale, was also aware of the incident on August 14, he said justifying the addition of sections 19(2) and 21 under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act (both pertaining to failing to inform the police). Kesarkar also said that a notice will be issued to the school, suggesting the dismissal of the management committee under these circumstances. If the management’s involvement is confirmed, the government will have no choice but to take strict action, including dissolving the management.
2-Member Committee Investigates The Badlapur Sexual Assault Case
The two-member committee – formed by Kesarkar a day after massive protests over the incident – spoke to the school’s president, general secretary, headmistress of its pre-primary section, the victims’ class teacher, and the chief civil surgeon of Central Ulhasnagar Hospital. The panel also summoned the suspended senior police inspector of Badlapur East police station, who also served as the investigating officer, but she refused to join the probe, claiming that she wasn’t in the mental state to do so.
Details Revealed By The 2-Member Committee
As reported earlier by the FPJ, the committee revealed that the police investigation lacked transparency and urgency. It stated that there was an “unpardonable” delay in conducting a medical examination of the victims after the offence was registered, which affected the evidence gathering. Instead of having the victims examined at the nearby government hospital, they were sent to the Ulhasnagar Central Hospital, where they had to wait until 3.30a m. Further, instead of completing the procedures in a go, they were sent home and asked to come again the next day August 18.
The probe also found that the school hadn’t done any background checks on the accused, who was hired as a sweeper through an external vendor. The school management also failed to furnish details about the employee’s contract and terms of services, raising doubts about the legality of the recruitment process, reads the report.
Govt Hands Over The Responsibility Of Running School’s Affairs To Kunda Patil, Deputy Education Officer At Thane
The government has since handed over the responsibility of running the school’s affairs from the management to Kunda Patil, Deputy Education Officer at Thane district. As her first order of business, she is working towards activating CCTV cameras, as the school reopened on Saturday last week after being shut for four days.
