A brutal incident of alleged rape of a three-year-old girl in an upmarket school by a staff member in Bangalore on Tuesday has sent shock waves.
After getting the information about the incident, many parents have been protesting outside the school seeking protection and security for their wards. According to the complaint by the father of the child, her behaviour was strange and she was crying when she came back from the school. He said, “My child had signs of fever and complained to her mother that she was physically abused by someone she did not know or recognise.”
According to Bangalore Police Commissioner MN Reddi, a case of sexual assault has been registered and investigations are underway. Reddi said the CCTV footage has been examined and all other necessary examinations will be carried out soon. He further said he has assured all parents to carry out free and quick investigation in the case to bring out fair results.
According to police they have detained six people for questioning. Police Inspector TC Venkatesh said the police also registered a case under Sections 4 and 6 of the Pocso Act (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012) and section 376 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) against the unidentified suspect(s).
A police source said that the girl had told the parents that an ‘uncle’ misbehaved with her. This made police suspect the role of the non-teaching staff, although some teachers have also been detained.
This is the third such incident of child abuse in a school in Bangalore. Bangalore witnessed a major protest few months back, after a six-year-old girl student was allegedly raped in The Vibgyor High school by its gymnastic coach and his assistant. The accused were arrested three weeks after the incident and remanded to judicial custody pending investigation and filing of the chargesheet by police.
The girl was subjected to medical tests and later admitted to a private hospital in the city. According to police, the preliminary medical report revealed injuries to her private parts. Malleswaram ACP Sara Fatima is heading the probe.