Mumbai Crime: 7-year-old complains of rape in Malad school

A Seven-year-old student of a Malad school has alleged that she was raped in her school bathroom on Thursday. Thousands of parents gathered outside the school on Friday following the incident to protest against the school authorities and have demanded that the school authorities, principal and teachers be booked. The school was blamed for not taking immediate action over repeated complaints by the child regarding the harassment and abuse by her peers.

According to the police, the Std I student reached home around 6.30 pm on Thursday when her parents noticed that she seemed unwell. She went to sleep without changing out of her school uniform. When her mother tried to change her clothes as she slept, she noticed bloodstains on her clothes. The mother, police said, spoke to the child who revealed that another child took her into the school bathroom, took off her clothes and painted on her private parts with chalk. The parents took the girl to the doctor immediately and she has been admitted for treatment.

The child was also allegedly forcibly fed a sanitizer solution on the school bus. The girl allegedly told her class teacher about the incident the very next day but no action was taken. The victim's uncle has now demanded action against the culprit school authorities.

70 CCTV across school
A parent on Friday said that she received a message on Whataspp to fetch her daughter from school. "I saw hundreds of parents and the police outside the school when I came and was later told that one girl was raped in the school. I was shocked. Is my child safe?" she said, adding, "We are paying an annual fee of R70,000 under the garb of extra-curricular activities. We were informed that 70 CCTV cameras were installed across the five-storeyed building."

"It is very easy to check the CCTV footage of the floor on which the incident took place and if an inquiry is conducted of the employees and teachers, the truth would come
out in minutes. Why then are the police officers taking so much time. It is not easy to digest," said another parent.

School bus CCTV wasn't functional
Given the gravity of the situation, senior officers from North region Mumbai police were called in with an extra police force at the school on Friday. DCP Dr DS Swami Zone XII (additional charge of Zone XI DCP) on Friday assured the parents of taking strict action against the accused and authorities if their negligence is highlighted during the investigation.

The police said that 99 per cent of the school staff are female. "We are checking the CCTV footage of the day of the incident and the day before the incident. The girl was seen entering and exiting the school. Everything seemed normal. There is a possibility of something having happened in the school bus but the CCTV camera in the bus was shut at the time," a police officer told mid-day.

A case under section 376 of IPC and section 4 and 8 of POCSO Act have been registered and the girl was transferred to a government hospital for her medical check-up, DCP Swami said.

70
No. of CCTV cameras across the school

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