MUMBAI: Maharashtra Education Minister Deepak Kesarkar on Monday said that the 15-day CCTV footage was missing from the Badlapur school where two kindergarten girls, were sexually assaulted.
Addressing the media, the education minister said the grandparents of these girls had informed the class teacher and principal about the assault, but the school did not pay adequate attention. A preliminary report by a state-appointed committee revealed that both girls suffered sexual abuse.
“The school management claims to have been informed on August 16, while the family asserts that they notified the school on August 14. This discrepancy is under investigation. The investigation also revealed that for the last 15 days, CCTV footage of the school was missing. The authorities are probing into it.
The disappearance of the CCTV footage has raised questions about the school’s response to the incident. Besides, they had called the female attendants of the school, but they refused to join the probe. As per procedure, their refusal to give statements will be recorded, said Kesarkar.
The Opposition alleged that the school is run by the BJP RSS leaders therefore the BJP led government in Maharashtra are protecting the school and police as well because they failed to lodge the complaint on time.
The sexual assault of the two girl sparked widespread outrage in Maharashtra with people demanding strict actions against the school and culprit. The incident led to massive protests in Badlapur, with thousands of people taking to streets and disrupting train services. Police arrested 72 people in connection with the violence.
The accused, Akshay Shinde, was arrested on August 17 and sent to 14 days judicial custody on Monday. Shinde was hired as a contractual worker without any background checks.