Cops yet to act against school staff for hushing up rape

Although the City police have for now ruled out Vibgyor High school Founder Chairman Rustom Kerawalla's role in destroying evidence in the rape on six-year-old child in the school, they are yet to take action against persons who attended to the child immediately after the incident on July 2, but did not report the sexual assault.

The police are yet to identify and take action against the school staffers who first spotted the child after the incident, a ‘visiting doctor’ who gave first aid and also the in charge of the school in Marathahalli who allegedly supervised the initial acts of hushing up of the case.

The City Police Commissioner M N Reddi on Wednesday had told the media that Rustom was booked under IPC Section 201 (destruction of evidence) which attracts an imprisonment up to seven years. However, the next day it was found that the police had invoked IPC Section 202 (punishment for intentional ommission to give information of offence) and 21 (1) (2) of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act, for failure to report or record a case of sexual assault on a child.

Both the sections are bailable and Section 202 was invoked against Rustom after a thorough enquiry after his arrest, said Reddi.

 “Initially we thought he had destroyed the evidence. Later, we realised that IPC Section 202 would be the appropriate provision. The police did not dilute the case, for the bailability for both the sections are the same,” he said.

There has been no action against those who destroyed crucial evidences despite 11 days after the complaint was lodged. The victim’s father told the police that some senior school staffer had called a ‘visiting doctor’ to administer a painkiller to the child.

 “Our priority was to arrest the main accused. The investigation into the alleged destruction of the evidence after the incident is still on and more arrests will be made soon. The probe so far has identified two accused and more arrests will happen soon” Reddi said.

Kerawalla wants action

Kerawalla wanted action to be taken against those staffers who actually hushed up the rape case. He reportedly told the police: “Action should be taken against principal or vice-principal or public relations officer of the Marathahalli school who are responsible for local administration. They are accountable for all that happens on the school premises, good or bad. I was updated about the incident only after the victim’s father lodged the complaint. Hence, it is wrong to fix responsibility on me,” he told the police.Kerawalla also told the police that he was responsible only for policy making. He operates more than 90 institutions, including schools and had decentralised duties and responsibilities for smooth administration. Hence, it was impossible for him to monitor everything in those institutions, he claimed.

He admitted that the local administration erred in appointing Mustafa even without verifying his antecedents, said the police.He admitted that he wanted to fly to Dubai. “I realised that I would be arrested anytime after pressure was built up on the government. I thought it was a matter of time before I was picked up after I was tipped about Central government’s instructions to Karnataka government. I wanted to avoid embarrassing situation and decided to move to Dubai,” Kerawalla reportedly a senior official connected with the probe.