There is chaos in Badlapur, Thane, Maharashtra after the case of sexual abuse of two girls in a school came to light. After getting information about this incident, there was a fierce clash between the angry mob and the police. The mob first vandalized the school and then stopped the trains at Badlapur railway station. The police fired tear gas shells to stop the mob, after which people started pelting stones. Dozens of people were injured in this incident.
To remove the people protesting at Badalpur railway station, police resorted to lathicharge on Tuesday evening. After the police lathicharge, people in the crowd started running here and there. People were removed from the track so that the movement of trains could be ensured. Police say that the situation is under control at present. Most of the demands of the people have been accepted. CM Eknath Shinde has also appealed to the people to maintain peace.
Local train traffic on the Central Railway section in Mumbai was affected for several hours. Train movement was halted from around 8.30 am on Tuesday. A police officer said that Badlapur station was finally cleared of protesters at 6 pm. In view of the protest, a large number of police and RPF personnel were deployed around the railway station and the school where the protesters had vandalised.
1. Sexual abuse of girls in school bathrooms
It is being told that the 23-year-old accused sexually abused the girls in the school bathroom on August 16. The family members of the victim girls filed a case in this matter a day later. After this, the police arrested the accused Akshay Shinde under the relevant sections of the POCSO Act. Action was taken against many people in this case. Under this, the woman inspector of the area, Shubhada Shitole, was transferred.
2. Principal, class teacher and 3 policemen suspended
Not only this, the school principal, class teacher and a female employee were suspended. Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and Home Minister Devendra Fadnavis wrote on Twitter, “Orders have been issued to immediately suspend the Senior Police Inspector, Assistant Sub-Inspector and Head Constable attached to Badlapur Police Station for negligence in duty.” An SIT has been formed for a quick investigation of this case.
3. Investigation handed over to IG rank female IPS
Devendra Fadnavis said that the state government has appointed Inspector General rank Indian Police Service (IPS) officer Aarti Singh for the investigation. Our effort will be to investigate this incident as soon as possible. We want to file a chargesheet in this case as soon as possible and present the case before a fast-track court for hearing. The police department will make every effort to get immediate punishment.
4. Badlapur case will be heard in a fast-track court
Earlier, Devendra Fadnavis had directed the Thane Police Commissioner to prepare a proposal to hear the case in a fast-track court. Opposition parties have alleged that the parents of the victim girls had to wait for 11 hours at the Badalpur police station before filing a complaint. Leader of Opposition in Maharashtra Assembly Vijay Wadettiwar has accused the police of negligence.
5. Congress leader said the incident was bigger than Kolkata
In a video message, the Congress leader said, “This incident is bigger than the rape and murder of a trainee doctor in a Kolkata hospital, which has caused national outrage. A three-and-a-half-year-old girl, a four-year-old girl are tortured and at the police station, when they want to lodge a complaint they (parents) have to wait for 11 hours. Is there any sensitivity left?”
6. Violent protests, people’s rail roko movement
Earlier, the protest against this incident turned violent on Tuesday. Angry protesters vandalized the school and also pelted stones at the local railway station during ‘Rail Roko’. Parents of school children and local citizens, including a large number of women, participated in this protest. They demanded action against the school and strict punishment against the accused involved in the incident.
7. Protesters broke school gates, benches and doors
Police said some protesters, including women, broke the school gate, window panes, benches and doors. At the railway station, when the protest disrupted train movement and inconvenienced a large number of passengers, police personnel and other officials tried to persuade the protesters to end the agitation but the situation was brought under control with great difficulty.
8. Demand for death penalty for the accused
The protesters rejected the state government’s appeal to end the Rail Roko movement. State Cabinet Minister Girish Mahajan tried to pacify the protesters on Tuesday afternoon, but he was unsuccessful. During this time, people kept raising slogans demanding justice for the victim girls and death penalty for the arrested accused.
9. BJP alleges that people came from outside Badlapur
Meanwhile, BJP MLA from Murbad assembly constituency of Thane district, Kisan Kathore, alleged that the protest at Badlapur railway station was politically motivated. He claimed that the agitators have not come from Badlapur but from neighboring areas. He said that these protesters are not from Badlapur city. They have come from neighboring areas like Ulhasnagar. Unnecessary politics is being done in this matter.
10. Now Vishakha committee will be formed in schools too
Amid public outrage over sexual harassment in schools, Maharashtra’s school education minister Deepak Kesarkar said that ‘Vishaka committees’ will be formed in schools. Action will be taken against schools if CCTV cameras installed in premises are found to be non-functional. In its landmark ‘Vishaka’ judgement, the Supreme Court has mandated the formation of internal committees to deal with complaints of sexual harassment at the workplace.
He said, “Vishaka committees will be formed at the school level. These committees will provide a platform to girl students, especially those of class 9, 10 and junior college to raise their grievances. There is already a government resolution which makes it mandatory that schools should have CCTV cameras, but in the school in Badlapur where the girls were sexually abused, the CCTV cameras were not working.
Source (PTI) (NDTV) (HINDUSTANTIMES)