BENGALURU: Following the outrage over the arrest of the whistleblower in the toddler abuse case at a childcare facility on the Capgemini campus, Bengaluru City Police Commissioner Seemanth Kumar Singh said there was no doubt that she may have been the whistleblower, but she was also equally involved in the crime. He said there was a seven-day delay in reporting the incident after the video was recorded.
The HAL police have arrested two women in connection with the case in which five caregivers were booked for allegedly abusing a toddler at the daycare facility inside the company’s campus in Brookefield.
A police officer said that the woman’s arrest was based on CCTV footage and statements from other employees of the facility. According to the investigation, she recorded the video on June 22 but handed it over to the Childline only on June 29.
Singh on Tuesday said the whistleblower was arrested based on two aspects. “There is sufficient evidence to justify the arrest. The law is very clear when it comes to sensitive cases involving children. Certain legal procedures and formalities were not followed in this case. She may not have been aware of the legal requirements.
As per our investigation so far, there was a considerable delay between the recording of the evidence and reporting it to the authorities. We are examining why there was such a delay. We have also gathered evidence suggesting that one of the cases appears to have been staged,” he said.
The Commissioner said that while there was no doubt that the woman may have acted as the whistleblower, she was also equally a part of the offence, which is why she was arrested. “We will question everyone connected with the case, including the parents, to understand why the incident was not reported immediately,” he said.
The police are also planning to issue guidelines for daycare facilities to ensure such incidents do not recur.
