Stone-Pelting, Tear Gas, Lathicharge in Massive Badlapur Protests Over Sexual Assault of 4-Year-Olds in School | Updates

Massive protests rocked Maharashtra’s Badlapur on Tuesday as residents blocked the Mumbai rail route and brought services to a halt to protest against the sexual assault on two four-year-old students at a reputed school by a contractual employee.

The accused, identified as Akshay Shinde, worked as a cleaner contracted through a third-party company and was arrested after the parents insisted on filing a formal complaint despite initial attempts by the police to play down the issue by delaying filing of the FIR for over 12 hours.

The school issued a public statement expressing regret over the incident, acknowledging the serious lapses in safeguarding students. However, this did not cut ice with the parents and the management was forced to suspend the principal.

Here are the latest updates in the case:

• Protests turned violent as agitated residents pelted stones at the police who used tear gas to disperse them from the tracks and resume services. Protestors raising slogans were heard demanding that the accused be hanged in public.

• Maharashtra education minister Deepak Kesarkar said the CCTV cameras in school were not working and a notice has been issued to the management. He added that the residents were angry mainly due to the delay in filing FIR.

• The teacher in-charge of the class that the girls studied in and the two attendants responsible for escorting students to the washroom have also been dismissed. The school’s administration has also terminated its contract with the company that employed the accused and blacklisted the contractor.

• Politicians cutting across party lines condemned the incident, with Maharashtra’s home minister Devendra Fadnavis ordering Thane police commissioner to submit a proposal to expedite the case.

• Police said the girls had told their parents that the attendant touched them inappropriately, following which a complaint was filed and a case was registered against him under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. He was later arrested.

• Central Railway chief public relations officer Swapnil Nila said the agitation was going on at the railway station in connection with an incident.

• The bandh has received backing from various trade organisations, including rickshaw unions, jewelers, and school bus operators.

• NCP leader Supriya Sule sought deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis’ resignation over the incident, alleging that he had failed in arresting the crime rate in the state.