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The school in Badlapur in Maharashtra's Thane district, where two kindergarten girls aged three and four, were sexually abused by a male cleaning staffer, chose to cover up the crime instead of helping their parents file a complaint with the police, Maharashtra State Commission for Protection of Child Rights Chairperson Susieben Shah said on Wednesday.
The crime committed by the accused, Akshay Shinde, resulted in tensions at Badlapur railway station with the protesting parents and locals staging a protest, blocking rail services and clashing with police personnel. A Special Investigation Team (SIT) led by IG Arti Singh was at the site and spoke to several senior police officials.
The two kindergarten girls were sexually abused in the school toilet on August 13, according to the police. The incident came to light after one of the girls narrated the ordeal to her parents on August 16. The accused was arrested on August 17.
Shah, the state child rights panel chief, said the sexual abuse of the two girls was a clear case under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offence (POCSO) Act. She said she contacted the Thane District Child Protection Unit about the parents' concerns after learning about the incident.
The official said the child protection unit took the parents to the police to file a complaint. She asserted if the school management had alerted the police earlier, the parents would not have waited for 12 hours.
The principal of the school "chose not to contact the police" despite being apprised of the incident, Shah alleged, adding that she went to the school management instead. "When I asked the school management about the case, they tried to cover it up. I even asked them why POCSO provisions should not be invoked against the school management," she said.
Parents raised concerns over why a female staff member was not assigned to clean the girls' toilet, a standard practice that could have potentially prevented such an incident. Meanwhile, the accused, Akshay Shinde, was produced in a Kalyan court.
The school management suspended the principal, a class teacher, and a female attendant, over the incident. The accused was appointed on August 1 on a contractual basis. Meanwhile, the internet was restored after being suspended and local train services on the Ambernath-Karjat section resumed after 10 hours following massive protests.
Over 70 people have been arrested and five FIRs have been filed against 500 in just 24 hours over the protests in Badlapur against the sexual abuse of two kindergarten students. Chief Minister Eknath Shinde alleged that the protest was politically motivated and that most protesters were outsiders.
The protests turned violent as angry locals threw stones at the school and vandalised it. A bus near the Badlapur railway station was also damaged. Police broke up the protests after nine hours by lathicharging at them to clear the rail tracks.
The Maharashtra government on Tuesday ordered the suspension of three police officials, including a senior police inspector, for alleged dereliction of duty in probing the case. It also set up an SIT to probe the case.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis stated he has directed the Thane Police Commissioner to prepare a proposal to try the case in a fast-track court. Eknath Shinde assured action against the school and said the case would be fast-tracked and that the guilty won’t be spared.
Speaking to ANI, NCPCR Chairperson Priyank Kanungo alleged that the school authorities tried to suppress the case and the concerned police station did not register the FIR timely. He said that action would be taken against the administration for trying to "suppress the case" and that a team would be sent to Badlapur for an inquiry.
