SC tells Govt to decide on plea for children's safety in schools

The Supreme Court on Tuesday told the Centre to consider within three-month a plea for laying down a policy to ensure the safety of children in private and government schools.

A bench of Justices Adarsh Kumar Goel and R F Nariman said the court was not experts on deciding policy or guidelines and it was for the government to look into the issues raised in the PILs filed by Barun Chand Thakur and others.

“We direct the Human Resources Development to look into the issues raised in the PILs and consider taking a decision within three months. The decision would cover both the government and private schools,” the bench said.

The court passed its order on a plea by Thakur, whose seven-year-old son was killed in a Gurugram school in August, last.

Lawyers Abha R Sharma and Sangeeta Bharti have also filed a PIL in the Apex Court seeking direction to lay down guidelines to protect the school-going children from offences like sexual abuse and murder.

The CBSE had earlier filed an affidavit in the matter saying it has issued many circulars for the security audit of staff, installation of CCTV cameras, to institutions affiliated to it to ensure safety and security of school children.