New Delhi: The Bombay high court on Wednesday (August 21) took suo moto cognisance of the Badlapur sexual assault case involving two four-year-old girls who were allegedly molested by a school attendant in Mahrashtra’s Thane.
The case was listed for hearing in front of a division bench of Justice Revati Mohite Dere and Justice Prithviraj Chavan on Thursday.
The two kindergarten girls were reportedly sexually molested by a 23-year-old school janitor, one Akshay Shinde, on August 12 and 13 at the girls’ restroom at a school in Badlapur.
According to the First Information Report (FIR), the parents reported the incident to police on August 16. The family said that the FIR was filed 11 hours following their complaint.
On August 17, the police arrested Shinde. His police custody was extended by the local court till August 26, Bar and Bench reported.
The incident sparked widespread protests in Badlapur. The police have filed FIRs against more than 400 protesters and arrested at least 66 of them as the agitation escalated on Wednesday.
Train services were disrupted for around 10 hours, the rail authorities said. Twelve express and mail trains were diverted, and 30 local trains were partially cancelled. Police resorted to lathi charge across Badlapur, reports say.
The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) has sent a team to Badlapur for an inquiry.
Three police officials, including a senior police inspector, have been suspended over alleged dereliction of duty in probing the case.
