Thane: A school principal was suspended along with two other staffers in connection with the sexual assault on two girl students of the school, officials said on Tuesday. The suspension orders were issued by the management of a Badlapur school in Maharashtra's Thane district, amid protests mounted by angry parents, their friends and local public. The protesters blocked the Badlapur railway station demanding stringent action against the culprits.
The crowd at the railway station began to swell after the news of the sexual assault spread like wild fire. The protests began at around 8 am, seeking to draw the district administration's attention. The irate protesters have not allowed any movement of trains. Hectic attempts made by the local police, railway police personnel and the district administration officials to pacify the protesters were in vain.
"From 10.10 am, the train movement is held up at the Badlapur railway station due to the ongoing protests over issues not related to railways," a Central Railways official said. In solidarity of the protest, several shops and other establishments in the region remained shut on Tuesday. The school where the incident of sexual abuse took place was also shut.
As the protesting crowds were unrelenting for many hours, the police resorted to mild lathicharge to disperse them.
Also, an angry mob armed with sticks stormed into the school where the alleged incident took place and vandalised the property. The protesters broke windows, chairs and other furniture on the school premises.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde appealed to the protesting parents to calm down as the rail blockade was hampering the functioning of local trains and affecting the denizens of the district and its neighbouring districts. "I have spoken to the Thane Commissioner of Police. The accused has been arrested. I have asked the case to be fast-tracked and book the accused under Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act," CM Shinde said.
Home Minister and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has ordered an inquiry by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) under the leadership of senior IPS officer Aarti Singh.
Thane Police said they arrested a school attendant for allegedly abusing two girls studying in the kindergarten, aged three and four years, on Saturday, August 17. The accused had reportedly abused the children in the school toilet. The victims had disclosed to their parents that the attendant had touched them inappropriately. This prompted their parents to lodge a complaint with the police who in turn registered a case against him under the POCSO Act. The accused was subsequently arrested, police said.
On Monday, the management tendered an apology over the incident and also placed the principal, a class teacher and a female attendant under suspension. The school also announced that it was blacklisting the firm which was supplying manpower for housekeeping. The school also assured that it would increase the vigilance on its premises.
Thane Rural Police top brass shunted out the police station in-charge who was accused of having failed to act when the parents approached with the complaint, PTI reported.
In the morning, a group of protesters, largely made up of parents of the children studying in the school, gathered outside the educational institute, demanding highest punishment for the culprit(s). The protesters who were seen carrying banners and placards moved to the railway tracks and mounted a rail blockade, catching the railway authorities off-guard. Their sloganeering demanded action against the guilty.
NCP (Sharad Chandra Pawar) MP Supriya Sule has demanded the resignation of Home Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Education Minister Deepak Kesarkar. Uddhav Thackeray has also criticized the Home Department after this incident.
Minister Deepak Kesarkar said that the school administration has been instructed to take action in this regard and the accused Akshay Rama Shinde has been charged under POCSO. Kesarkar said that the government has taken steps to give severe punishment to this accused at the earliest. It has come to light that this incident happened because there is no CCTV in the concerned school, so a notice has been issued to the school and instructions have been given to keep a complaint box in the school, he added.
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