Thousands of protesters blocked railway tracks at Badlapur station in Thane district near Mumbai and stormed a local school building after the alleged sexual assault of two four-year-old girls by the school sweeper in the washroom.
The police cane-charged the protesters, who occupied the railway tracks, pelting stones at policemen.
According to PTI, Hundreds of protesters, many of them angry parents, vandalised the school building to express their disgust over the sexual assault.
Maharashtra deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said he ordered the formation of a special investigation team headed by senior IPS officer Arti Singh.
Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said action will be taken against the school, adding that the case will be fast-tracked and the guilty won’t be spared. “I have taken serious cognizance of the incident in Badlapur. An SIT is already formed in this matter and we are also going to take action against the school where the incident took place. We are in the process to fast-track this case, and no one will be spared if found guilty,” CM Eknath Shinde said while speaking to ANI
At Badlapur station, incensed protestors were seen shouting “hai, hai” slogans against the police officials and demanded death penalty for the sweeper allegedly involved in the assault.
Amid outrage over the alleged sexual abuse of two kindergarten girls at a school in Badlapur, Maharashtra school education minister Deepak Kesarkar on Tuesday said `Vishakha committees’ will be formed in schools.
Schools will face action if CCTV cameras installed on their premises are found to be non-functional, he told reporters in Mumbai.
Formation of internal committees to deal with complaints of workplace sexual harassment is mandatory as per the Supreme Court’s guidelines in the landmark `Vishakha’ judgement.
#WATCH | Alleged sexual assault with a girl child at a school in Badlapur | A few people were seen pelting stones at the Police at Badlapur Railway Station after the personnel resorted to lathi-charge to disperse protestors gathered here in protest over the incident.
Visuals… pic.twitter.com/jVUcCr6wQ8
— ANI (@ANI) August 20, 2024
“Vishakha committees will be formed at the school level,” Kesarkar said, adding that they will provide a platform for raising grievances to girl students, especially those in standards 9th, 10th and junior college.
There was already a government resolution mandating that schools should have CCTV cameras, but at the school in Badlapur where two girls were allegedly abused the CCTV cameras were not functional, the minister noted.
Amid the unrest in Maharashtra’s Badlapur over the sexual assault of two minor girls at a school, enraged residents began stone pelting at the school where the crime took place.
The alleged sexual assault of two fourth-grade girls in Badlapur, Maharashtra, has sparked widespread outrage.
As Angry residents, demanding justice, began pelting stones at the School, the situation escalated, prompting police intervention. Authorities used tear gas and other measures to control the crowd and restore order.
The protesters, wearing black clothing, targeted the school in their demonstration. As the chaos subsided, the police were able to apprehend the individuals responsible for the stone-throwing. The suspects have been taken into custody and are being held at the local police station.
TMC MP Saket Gokhale Tweeted on X
The bias by Modi media & the attempt to bury this gruesome sexual assault of 2 children in Maharashtra is shocking & pathetic.
What’s worse is that Thane – where Badlapur is located – is the bastion of Maharashtra’s illegal CM Eknath Shinde. The cops there are his handpicked… https://t.co/7HSlAuzHG2
— Saket Gokhale MP (@SaketGokhale) August 20, 2024
The police are continuing their investigation into the assault case and are working to maintain peace in the community.
Rajya Sabha Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi tweeted on X
Surprised with the @IndiaToday coverage on the Badlapur issue. Please tell your audience that, this incident took place last week,
– the state government was busy promoting Ladki Behen Yojana with a budget of over 200 crores,
– the Education Minister, Deepak Kesarkar, didn’t…— Priyanka Chaturvedi🇮🇳 (@priyankac19) August 20, 2024
