School Principal in K'taka arrested over charges of making students to clean soak pit
Kolar (Karnataka), Dec 18: The principal of a school in Karnataka's Kolar district was arrested over a complaint of forcing some students to clean the soak pit in the school premises, officials said on Monday.
Kolar district-incharge Minister B S Suresh inspected the school today and spoke to the students and teachers to seek details.
Based on the complaint filed by the Joint Director of the Social Welfare Department, two separate FIRs were registered on Sunday. The first FIR was in connection with the soak pit incident in which the school principal was arrested, while the other one was related to the POCSO Act in which a teacher was arrested, officials said.
"The school principal was arrested since it was in her presence that some students were made to allegedly clean the soak pit. In another case, a male teacher was arrested in connection with a POCSO case booked against him," a senior police officer said.
ALSO READ: NCPCR asks K'taka police to probe incident where SC students forced to clean septic tank
Following the arrests, three other employees of the school named in the FIR were found absconding.
According to officials, as per a preliminary inquiry, some students of Classes 8, 9 and 10 in Morarji Desai School at Yaluvahalli in Malur taluk were allegedly forced to clean a soak pit on the school premises on December 1.
However, the matter came to the notice of the Karnataka Residential Educational Institutions Society (KREIS) and other higher authorities only on Sunday after purported pictures and video of the incident were circulated through social media platforms.
KREIS Executive Director Naveen Kumar Raju told PTI that a probe committee has been formed for a detailed inquiry. This panel will visit the spot and submit a report within a week. Based on it, further action would be taken. Three staff members -- principal, warden and an outsourced staff member who allegedly asked the students to perform the tasks -- were suspended in connection with the soak pit incident.
Meanwhile, two male teachers have been suspended over allegations under the POCSO Act and corporal punishment, respectively, the officials said.
"We have suspended five of them and got two cases registered. One FIR has been booked under the Scheduled Caste and the Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 and the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act for making students clean the pit.
"However, we have now been informed that the students were not made to clean the soak pit but they were actually made to remove the obstacles near the chamber behind the pit. However, our probe committee would be visiting the spot to conduct a detailed inquiry into the matter," he said.
"Another case has been booked against the male teacher under the Protection of Children Against the Sexual Offences Act and the teacher concerned has also been arrested in connection with the incident that occurred on Thursday," he said.
Noting that manual scavenging is a serious issue, Raju said, "As soon as the matter came to our notice, we took all the measures to counter it. The entire system in the school will be changed now. New principal, teachers and wardens will be appointed. We have taken all the necessary measures to ensure that no such incident is repeated."
According to officials, during the preliminary inquiry, other allegations of ill-treatment of the students by the staff also surfaced.
In one such incident, a private video of a girl child was also taken by the male teacher and a case under the POCSO Act was booked against him. He was arrested as well as suspended in connection with the incident.
In another incident of corporal punishment in the same school, a male teacher allegedly forced some students to do hands-up and kneel down punishment with heavy bags on their backs. The teacher concerned has also been suspended by KREIS, the officials said.
Following the incident, on Monday, an outfit named Karnataka Bheem Sene staged a protest outside the residential school demanding strict action against the principal and staff.
A team of BJP leaders led by R Ashok, the leader of the opposition in the Karnataka Assembly, today visited the school, discussed the incident with the officials, teachers and students.
Ashok said that those who committed such acts should be punished and it should not be repeated in the future.
Kolar district-incharge Minister B S Suresh also inspected the school today spoke to the concerned officials and sought details about the action taken.
Later speaking to the media, he said both teaching and non-teaching staff of the school will be transferred. Police have been directed to nab three persons who were found absconding. A separate team has been formed, he said.
Once they are arrested, they will be subjected to investigation and action will be taken against them in accordance with law. By transferring everyone, it will send out a strong message, he added.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
BMW hit-and-run case: HC refuses to release accused Mihir Shah on ground of 'illegal' arrest
Mumbai (PTI): The Bombay High Court on Monday refused to release Mihir Shah, the main accused in a BMW hit-and-run case, on the ground of "illegal" arrest.
Shah, the 24-year-old son of a former Shiv Sena leader, and his driver Rajrishi Bidawat had filed petitions in the HC claiming they have been illegally detained and sought immediate release.
Shah was arrested on July 9, two days after he allegedly rammed his BMW car into a two-wheeler in Mumbai's Worli area, killing 45-year-old woman Kaveri Nakhwa and leaving her husband Pradeep injured.
His driver Bidawat, who was also present in the car at the time of the accident, was arrested on the day of the incident.
As per their pleas, the police had not informed them the grounds of their arrest at the time, which they claimed was in violation of the law.
A division bench of Justices Bharati Dangre and Manjusha Deshpande on Monday dismissed the petitions.
"Both the petitions are dismissed," the court said.
The duo sought their release, claiming any further detention would be in utter violation of the constitutional mandate and a failure to comply with Section 50 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
Under this section, the police, while arresting a person, have to communicate to him/her full particulars of the offence for which he/she is being arrested or other grounds for such arrest.
Both Shah and Bidawat are presently in judicial custody.
In their habeas corpus (produce the person) petitions filed in the HC in August, Shah and Bidawat claimed their detention was illegal and sought that they be released immediately.
Shah, in the plea, sought quashing of the orders passed by a local court remanding him first in police custody and then judicial custody.
He also sought for his arrest to be declared as illegal.
Shah is accused of speeding off towards the Bandra Worli Sea Link after the accident, even as the woman remained on the bonnet of the car and then got entangled in its wheels, for a distance of more than 1.5 kilometres.
As per police, Shah, who fled from the scene, was under the influence of alcohol at the time.
Mihir Shah's father and former Shiv Sena leader Rajesh Shah had also been arrested in the case, but was later granted bail.
